Psalm 56

 Psalm 56

Have you ever had your words twisted? It is an awful thing to hear people make judgments or statements about us based on things we didn't actually say.  Things like email and texting can very easily get us to misinterpret words because we lack eye contact or tone.  Have you ever read an email and though someone was mad, but it was not the case at all?  Have you ever got a text that autocorrected and really changed the meaning of the message, but you did not know that as the receiver because you did not know what the original was supposed to say?  We have to be careful to really examine the words of people.  Did they really say this?  Did they misspeak?  Is this taken out of context?

A lot of what I dealt with as a principal in a Christian school was based around misunderstanding.  "I heard you said this about me".  "Actually, no I wasn't even talking about you".  Maybe it was just a twisting of the words to stir up trouble by someone.  Whatever it may be- if we are consistent in our speech and behavior then we will be more likely to get the benefit of the doubt.  We are more likely to get a chance to be heard out.  What is really an awful scenario is if we say something that is taken out of context, but people believe it is probably true because it "sounds like something they would say".
 At the end of the day, you cannot control what people think or believe.  However, God knows our hearts, our words, and our thoughts.  He knows the truth.  That works in both directions. When everyone else thinks we are wrong He is the one who knows our innocence.  At the same time- we may have everyone else thinking we are so innocent- but He knows the truth of our guilt.