Matthew 18:15

Matthew 18:15

“Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.”

Every single time field time is brought up, interpersonal conflict is the next thing to be talked about. I don’t think any of us expected to always get along perfectly, but I none of us came here thinking “wow, I just can’t wait to fight with my teammates!” But, considering that we aren’t perfect, expecting perfection is really not realistic. Looking for sin is foolish but so is expecting it to not be there. Working through conflict in a godly way is so difficult because just about all the time, it means dying to self and putting on new life in Christ. In the heat of the moment, there is nothing I want less than to give up my rights and be the peacemaker. Especially if I’m convinced that I’m right. In the flesh, giving up my rights is humiliating and completely ridiculous. My nature says to stand up for what I want and think with ever fiber of my being. But man, when I’m walking in the Spirit and I choose to just do as He says, the outcome is incredible. Instead of the problem becoming even bigger, it is worked through and unity is rebuilt. Now, I don’t expect to be able to just start living this verse out perfectly. It would definitely be nice, but that’s not how life works. But, what I can do is ask the Lord to teach me to humbly go to the one who has wronged me and work through the problem before it gets bigger. This cannot be done in my own strength but in the strength that God offers to those who trust in Him.