Elaine Harris Spearman Column: You should be accountable for what you say to others

What did you sow in 2023, as the year is rapidly coming to an end? “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)

Being no theologian or an ordained minister, I speak as a lifelong member of the United Methodist Church. That membership included Sunday School and church every Sunday, like it or not.

The passage cited, simply put, is you will reap what you sow. You will experience the same kind of things that you have caused others to experience.

One of the examples given most repeatedly in my research was “if you are rude to people, people will be rude to you.”

There are people who genuinely extend themselves and give back to the community to make it a “kinder, gentler” place. There are those who have had a kind word for people other than their friends, family members and their chosen ones.

There are people who don't just give lip service, who don’t do what they do for photo ops. Some people are front and center of any photograph taken, if they are present. You know who they are, and it diminishes the value of what is being done.

“Those who plough iniquity and trouble harvest it.” (Job 4:8) If you have spent your year attacking and undermining everybody and everything, you don’t have to question why many things in your own life and the lives of those closest to you continue to spiral downward.

There are those who have taken over churches, as lay people, and turned them into private clubs where all are not welcome unless they are subservient to the crowd in charge. Many are discouraged from attending services or any other church events because of the behavior of others.

Get upset. Get upset enough to change. I have heard this from many, many people.

I have been asked repeatedly for a follow-up column on the negativity that we are all surrounded by. Right now, there is not much to add to what was said earlier.

The answers to what is happening escape me. Is it a function of an argumentative society? Are all of us reaping the effects of a failure to make people accountable for how they speak to others, what they say and when they say it?

Where has the gracious Southerner gone? Is everybody harsh and coarse simply to make a point? When were you last a witness to, or a victim of, someone “giving you a piece of their mind?” Wouldn’t they be better off if they kept that last piece after giving away so much, for future use?

Family growth and development has long been a hallmark for a decent society. Every other Dear Abby column finds people seeking advice on family issues. Sibling rivalry, parent-child relationships and general family strife are constant.

The advice remains steadfast: There is nothing you can do if all are adults. Step back and let them work it out, if possible. Face the fact that the apple does not fall far from the tree.

Most people use the coming of a new year to make resolutions to be better than they were in the previous one. In doing so, we must face the fact that you cannot make a racehorse out of a mule. The most you will have is a fast mule.

We will need character, courage and stamina for the year 2024.

So many people are still struggling for relevance and recognition. There must be a fear of being a footnote in the dustbins of time.

When you see a young man who publicly says that he will wear his expulsion from the U.S. House of Representatives as a badge of courage and pride, you don’t have to ask if something is wrong. There’s no facing of the fact of being a liar, a cheat and a fraud. “Let us not be desirous of glory, provoking one another, envying one another.” (Galatians 5:22-26)

Further, “For if a man think himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.” (Galatians 6:3)

We will not understand the support for a man who has sown, and continues to sow, seeds of violence, divisiveness, mean-spiritedness and hatred. Must all of America and the world reap what has been sown by Donald J. Trump?

Former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney has suffered the wrath of those seeds planted as she refuses to be afraid to tell of the danger that continues to be posed to America, democracy and the world.

Ask yourself why Trump wants to run this country so badly? He has no history of doing anything to improve the lives of people, or society at large. He has schemed, disparaged people and stood on the necks of Americans for personal gain. He has no sincere desire to make this country and people’s lives better.

Cheney’s book, “Oath and Honor, A Memoir and a Warning,” warns us of the danger we still face and is a call to action for all Americans.

Trump’s cause has been espoused from his own mouth: It is revenge. He is an impeached former president who sought to overthrow democracy in America.

“Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” (Deuteronomy 32:35; Romans 12:19; Hebrews 10:30.

Elaine Harris Spearman, Esq., a Gadsden native, is an attorney and is the retired legal advisor to the comptroller of the City of St. Louis. The opinions expressed are her own.

This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Elaine Harris Spearman on reaping what you sow