Left alone at the playground.
Locked in a bathroom stall.
Called a loser or slut.
Money stolen from your locker, again.
Threats on Facebook
Bullying.
Whether a victim of bullying or been a bully, everyone has been impacted by this growing phenomena. What is the birthplace of bullying?
Jealous- feeling envious of others achievements or advantages.
Insecurity- not confident in oneself; fear of not being accepted; feeling unsafe.
Judgement- quick to judge someone based on their outward appearance or actions.
The value of friendship has been misplaced and instead the heart of bullying has been clasped by many. When did we get so mean?
Yet, bully can be terminated. Through the power and hope of Jesus Christ, we can together replace:
jealous with unconditional love,
insecurity with assurance,
judgement with mercy.
Together we can.
Chantelle
Chantelle
Where have I become so mean?
Simple, with my words. Truthfully, I've been bullied and I've bullied.
How?
Words. I feel like I am a song on repeat. So, I'll state it again and again, as if it's the climax of a catchy Katy Perry song, yet why don't you use your words? Don't use them to tear yourself or anyone else down, rather use them to properly express yourself. In all honestly, I have to daily instruct myself with one rather blunt statement: use your words. I pray that you join me to use your words and ask yourself: where have I become so mean?
Charlene
LOVE The Different
I think a huge thing we lack is realizing we are all different and we will never be the same, think the same or act the same. And just because someone is different does not give us the right to judge, bully, or try to change(only God can do that). We are called to LOVE unconditionally.....without reason or cause.
There are so many lessons I learned as a kid that spring to mind as I write this, such as, and I quote, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." Simple, so simple......why, then, is it so hard to do. Is it that you have not heard these wise and profound words? If not, please watch Bambi and heed Thumper's parent's advice ;)
But back to LOVE......LOVE is patient, LOVE is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. LOVE does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.(1Cor.13:4-7)
Now this seems a little more difficult.....patient, being patient is hard and I know it, pride, something else I struggle with. For some it may be trust and hope or for others, keeping no record of wrong. Whatever you struggle with in the previous verses know that through God all things are possible and if you seek Him first and put Him first you will learn what TRUE LOVE is and find less and less difficulties in LOVEing others instead of judging, bullying or trying to change them.
Let God LOVE others through you.
Xo TinaMarie
The Silent Bystander
When I think of bullying, I am overcome by an overwhelming
sense of regret. Why do you ask? I was never one who purposefully or actively
participated in bullying, nor was I often on the receiving end of tormenting
words or actions. Instead, my role was that of the silent bystander. Many
situations play across my mind of relentless bullying, verbal and emotional cruelty
to others. And instead of standing against it, I silently turned away and
attempted to pretend that it didn’t exist. Does this action make me any less
guilty? Nope, not really. By doing nothing at all, I became a silent
participator. So if silence isn’t the solution, then what is? The answer at its
most simple state is LOVE. The Bible
tells us over and over again that we are called to love. What does love look
like? Well it certainly does not take the form of nothing nor does it often
take the form of silence. No, love looks like Jesus. Love is an action. In one
of my favorite passage of scriptures Paul clearly shares what love is (and yes,
this is the verse that Tina shared, but could it be that there is a reason we
need to hear it more than once?)
“Love is PATIENT,
Love is KIND.
It does not ENVY, It does not BOAST, It is
not PROUD. It is not RUDE, it is
not SELF-SEEKING, it is not EASILY ANGERED, it KEEPS NO RECORD OF
WRONGS.
Love DOES NOT delight in evil, but REJOICES with
the truth.
Love ALWAYS PROTECTS,
ALWAYS TRUSTS,
ALWAYS
HOPES,
ALWAYS
PERSERVERES.
LOVE NEVER FAILS.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Not only
does the Bible tell us HOW to love,
but Jesus also told us WHO we are to
love…
“LOVE the LORD YOUR GOD with ALL your HEART, with ALL your SOUL, and with ALL your MIND…
And LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.
Matthew 22: 37-39
So instead of anything else, instead of inflicting cruelty
and pain, instead of responding in silence and turning away, may we always
choose love. To always be love, share love, show love, and respond in love.
With a humble heart,
Ashley
It's not okay...EVER!
I believe bullying has been downplayed. You hear such sayings as...
They deserved it.
It's all in good fun.
I'm just joking.
The justifications go on and on. But it's not okay. There is no justification for bullying anyone, friend, family, co-worker, our peers or strangers.
It's not okay to call someone names. It's not okay to push someone around or be aggressive in any way shape or form. It's not okay to share private pictures of someone all over the internet. It's not okay to provoke someone who says they want to commit suicide and tell them...ya, go do it then. It's not okay to hide someone's possessions, like their lunch or their clothes after hockey practice. It's not okay to create fake accounts to pester someone on facebook. It's not okay to write horrid, despicable statements to a stranger on youtube, just because you will never have to face this person. It's not okay to threaten someone's life. It's not okay to "teach" someone a lesson. It's not okay to retaliate because someone did it first. It's not okay to harass the guy who likes a different team, or the girl who dresses differently. It's not okay to bully based on someone's race, gender or different ideas/opinions. It's not okay to point out someone's flaws(God only created beautiful and good...we are unique and different for a reason)
There are so many more examples I could give that are not okay. It's not okay for any reason, it is never ever okay.
Yet, for some reason we downplay many of these acts of bullying. And we justify them. Why do we justify them? Why do we not recognize the hurt being caused by allowing the downplay of our words and actions? Why do we not see that countless acts of suicide are happening because we won't accept that we were the catalyst for someone taking their own life? Why are we not taking responsibility for our children, for our youth, for ourselves and our actions/words?
Why are we downplaying bullying?
We are a hurting human race. We are a selfish human race. We have lost respect for ourselves and others. We inflict pain to hide our own. We want to fit in, we are jealous/envious, we are competitive, we are angry...so we bully.
No reason is reason for any form of bullying. It is not okay...EVER!
Christy Creative Dreamer Dawn
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