ServantForLife

So it’s been a while since I have had the chance to post up here.  I have really missed it because it gives me the chance to really get my thoughts down coherently.  But now I’m back and ready to go.

So Peacemaker’s Second G revolves around Matthew 7:3-5.  The first time I had heard this passage was on Youth Group ski trip. It was expressed with such gusto and feeling that it has made it nearly impossible to forget  Let me set the scene.  We were in the conference room of a hotel, most of us are tired after a long day of skiing, but still enjoying our evening bible study. My mentor Jeff Reed brought up this passage in regards to our evening bible study.  He took a little liberty with his translation though. So I’ll give it to you in the Gospel According to Reed version.   ” Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brothers eye  when you have a huge frigging plank that you have to have to yank out of your own.”  Now add on top of that a really intense expressive voice and hand motions, and you might be able to see why that verse has stuck with me.  It impressed upon me at a young age the importance of looking at my own faults before others.  The difficulty then was to actually do it.

So how does this fit into being a peacemaker.  Well the log in our own eyes at some point has become something that we need or want.  And when we don’t get these things, we become angry and judgmental to the point of taking it out on other people.  This is the portion of the conflict that we are 100% responsible for.  What has become so important to us that it has gotten in the way of our relationship with Christ and with another person?   It is very easy to look at someone else and blame them entirely for the conflict we are in. It is very difficult, however, to figure out what we have done to contribute to the conflict..  To discover this we need to really examine our motives and ask some serious questions of ourselves.  We need to pray and study scripture to discover where we are sinning.  Finally we need to confess to God and others whom we’ve sinned against exposing the log in our eye and ask for forgiveness..  That confession needs to be honest and done with humility.  

One thing that Paul Cornwell from Peacemakers said that really struck me in all of this was that “Forgiveness is only the first step.  It gives you the capacity to resolve your conflict.”  So finding out what my log was and seeking forgiveness for how it affected another person is only the beginning.  It opens the door for me to begin resolving my disagreement and bringing me to unity with a brother or sister in Christ.

Lord give me the strength, guidance, and wisdom to seek out my own faults and issues.  Give me the courage to address them and ask for forgiveness.  Give me the strength to always believe the best in my brothers and sisters in Christ by examining myself for fault first, before I go looking for it in them.

SK

So for those who are reading this and don’t know me, or haven’t heard about the happenings at South Park Church, you might need a little context for this series of blogs.  Let me give it to you.  For the past year at SPC we have been up and down the road of church conflict.  Some of it we have handled well, some of it not so much.  In the end we decided to ask Peacemaker Ministries to come down, give our church an evaluation and to train us in Biblical conflict resolution.  What a blessing having them here over the past couple of days has been.  I have learned more in 2 days regarding conflict resolution than I ever thought I would.  I’m so excited that I have to share it with you.  So here we go:

“The first step in evaluating how to handle a conflict is to ask yourself this question: How can I please God in this situation?”  These are the words Paul Cornwell from Peacemaker Ministries shared with us Saturday morning.  I was totally taken aback.  I had to stop and think about the conflicts I had experienced lately and figure out if I had asked myself this question.  I couldn’t remember if I had at all.  In fact I am pretty sure I had not.  At least not intentionally.  But it is easily the most important step in the process because it sets the tone for how the rest of your conflict will be handled. Now I am the type of person that will honestly just try to start handling the conflict to get it done and over with.  But this is most often not the most God honoring solution.  In fact, it probably tends to exasperate the problem if I am completely honest with myself.  So my way of handling conflict was more often contrary to glorifying God.

So how do I glorify God in a conflict?  Well Paul had a great answer for us.  There are three things you need to ask yourself to discover if you are glorifying God in the midst of conflict:

1. Am I Trusting Him?
   • Am I letting go and giving this conflict to God and allowing Him to lead me and give me strength to handle this conflict as He desires?
2. Am I Obeying Him?
   • Am I studying scripture and using the tools He has given me to use in resolving this conflict?
3. Am I Imitating Him?
   • Am I following the example Christ left for us?  Am I being humble, slow to anger and soft in my speech?

The one that hits me the most is the last one.  Am I truly imitating Christ in my approach to being a peacemaker?  Something Paul said that i won’t forget is that: “Peace has everything to do with representing Christ in the world”

Lord, allow me to be a peacemaker.  As I engage in conflict resolution, help me to pause and make sure that I am glorifying your name, that I am truly representing You.

SK