| TO PEOPLE'S FACES AND BEHIND THEIR BACKS by Brad Wilcox, Associate Professor, Brigham Young University Jesus taught a parable about a lost sheep. Remember the shepherd who left the "ninety and nine" to go in search of the one (Luke 15:4)? When I was younger I always felt bad for the ninety-nine who were left behind while the shepherd paid so much attention to just one. Now I realize that by caring so much about the one, the shepherd was also communicating his love for the ninety-nine. By seeking the lost sheep, the shepherd helped all the others feel more secure. What if the shepherd had said, "Hey, I'm not going to take time to go find that dumb lost sheep. He has a big nose and frizzy wool anyway." Even if the ninety-nine laughed, they probably would have been thinking, "Is that how he is going to act when I get lost?" Gossiping about one sheep behind its back sends a clear message to ninety-nine others that you are capable of doing the same thing to them one day. The best policy is to show respect--to people's faces AND behind their backs. Original Source: Growing Up: Gospel Answers About Maturation and Sex by Brad Wilcox (Bookcraft, 2000), pp. 29-30. |