One of my publishing mentors, Stephen Board (former editor of HIS Magazine, Eternity, and publisher and owner of Harold Shaw Publishers) always told me that one way you could tell a real magazine from one pretending to be was if the magazine published letters of criticism without responding defensively. At first I thought, BUT what if it is unfair? Later I realized the wisdom of the advice.
Years later, a real life example occurred. My fiance, your sister, heard some rumors about me and she felt I should respond and defend myself. I told her, no amount of defensiveness on my part would ever balance the scales. What I needed to do was to continue with my life and in God's providence, by time and example the truth would come out. The situation did resolve itself and the truth came out.
I urge you to listen. Weigh the responses and let them go. If there is truth to the criticism ask God to show it to you confirm it in other ways.
This is two cents worth of advice from a wounded warrior who is grateful for anyone willing the give me criticism, anonymous or not.
If the criticism is valuable it will be a constant reminder to you of your faults and the need to deal with them. If the criticism does not have value ,it will dissipate and turn to dust.
blogging or is it slogging - or sludging - or bludgeoning
Steve - Thank-you - I receive your words of wisdom and encouragment - using the word encouragement as "to put courage into" as that is what you have gifted me with........... my natural instinct, of course, is to defend myself.? My curiosity is what is driving me - and my FURY is what is holding me back :) - cause I sure could say alot more than i did - but the whole point of blogging - for me - was to get out the gunk - and move on, so why would I want to play in the gunk that was brought to me - when I just dumped my own pile :)
2 comments:
One of my publishing mentors, Stephen Board (former editor of HIS Magazine, Eternity, and publisher and owner of Harold Shaw Publishers) always told me that one way you could tell a real magazine from one pretending to be was if the magazine published letters of criticism without responding defensively. At first I thought, BUT what if it is unfair? Later I realized the wisdom of the advice.
Years later, a real life example occurred. My fiance, your sister, heard some rumors about me and she felt I should respond and defend myself. I told her, no amount of defensiveness on my part would ever balance the scales. What I needed to do was to continue with my life and in God's providence, by time and example the truth would come out. The situation did resolve itself and the truth came out.
I urge you to listen. Weigh the responses and let them go. If there is truth to the criticism ask God to show it to you confirm it in other ways.
This is two cents worth of advice from a wounded warrior who is grateful for anyone willing the give me criticism, anonymous or not.
If the criticism is valuable it will be a constant reminder to you of your faults and the need to deal with them. If the criticism does not have value ,it will dissipate and turn to dust.
blogging or is it slogging - or sludging - or bludgeoning
Steve -
Thank-you - I receive your words of wisdom and encouragment - using the word
encouragement as "to put courage into" as that is what you have gifted me
with...........
my natural instinct, of course, is to defend myself.? My curiosity is what is
driving me - and my FURY is what is holding me back :) - cause I sure could say
alot more than i did - but the whole point of blogging - for me - was to get out
the gunk - and move on, so why would I want to play in the gunk that was brought
to me - when I just dumped my own pile :)
Thanks for being with me -
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