When is it necessary to use words?

BIBLICAL POINT OF REFERENCE:

"For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every foul practice. But the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peaceable, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, without inconstancy or insincerity."

~James 3:16-17

Early last week I had the wonderful opportunity to pray and protest silently at a Planned Parenthood facility somewhat near my hometown. I was on Spring Break, and I figured it would be a great experience - and it was! Even though I was a bit scared, it reminded me of what pro-lifers fight for, and what I think is important in life: to praise God in all we do! Since I was there, I also decided to do something different for SheCanLaugh: I made a live video of the experience! I even got my dad to join in, and I posted it right to Twitter so all of you could have the chance to pray with me. I thought that doing all this was a good thing - and I think it was, but only to a certain extent. You see, the same night I posted the video to Twitter, someone retweeted a response to it with some unkind words. Many Twitter users will understand and I'm sure know the feeling of being attacked online; of course it is not fun, but when you post and share your beliefs online, you always run the risk of others responding in any way they choose, good or bad. Anyways, the words aren't worth repeating, but I am not one to back down from hurtful words. I thought about what would be a good way to respond back to the person, and in the end I decided an indirect message would be better. However, this tweet was once again retweeted by the same person with a worse message. I didn't say anything back this time, but I did quickly block the person on Twitter. One thing I've been struggling with since this all happened is if I should have responded to the Tweet in the first place; ultimately, what good did it do? I could say that I was standing up for what I believe in, and sure, maybe I was. But was it in the right way? Or was I being more egotistical than anything else? To people such as the person being offensive on Twitter, I have nothing to prove to them, especially when it comes to my faith. If they choose to be rude online, that is their choice, and I really can't change it. But yet I sought out a further argument. I decided to keep pushing the offender, and not just let them be with their own beliefs, no matter how much I disagreed with them. So did I do wrong? I don't know the answer. While I was certainly frustrated that someone would attack me on such a public scale, I didn't need to invigorate them further by responding. But I also didn't want to let one person have the power over me to get me down. I guess you could say that I was feeling the fire of God! I can tell you all that there is no lasting damage, and that I actually got a lot more support on this occasion than backlash. I can also tell you that while this was the first time I received such harsh criticism online, it probably won't be the last. But there is a fine line between saying enough and saying too much, and especially when it comes to our faith, sometimes it is better to keep our mouths shut and our prayers silent. So I'll let you be the judge: When is it necessary to use words in situations like this? As always, keep the faith, my sisters, and be careful with what you put your energy into. Your Laughing Sister, ​Callahan

Check out the BEING GODLY WOMEN and WISDOM quotes pages for more inspiration!