In the movie Ratatouille, the character Anton Ego uttered profound truth when he stated,
In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little, yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face is that, in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so.
I can't but help think about this quote as I scroll through my social media feeds. It seems that one can get a rather popular little blog following by criticizing something or someone else. And it's especially popular amongst my fellow Christians who stand ready to crank out negativity at a pace and volume that would be impressive were it not for the content of their rather prolific sludge.
So, here's my challenge to me, you, and everybody else. The next time you (I) feel tempted to write that "Open Letter to ____" (Where ____ is the person or thing I'm really annoyed at/tired of/offended by), sit down with a blank sheet of paper and take an hour to come up with a better way to do what ____ is doing. The worst that could happen is that you make the world better while not contributing to the volume of complete garbage on the internet.
There ya go, two birds with one stone.
Far harder it is to build than to break, Far tougher to tend than to tear, Far better to create than to critique, More loving to rejoice than to despair.