Keeping Strife Away Galatians 5:14–15 says, “The entire law is summed up in a single command: Love your neighbor as yourself. If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.” Strife can tear relationships apart. It amazes me at how many Scriptures there are that address the subject of strife. I found 43 scriptures — and that doesn’t even include other synonyms like discord and dissention. Strife is a serious issue that needs to be addressed. The definition of strife is — conflict, antagonism, quarrel, struggle, clash, competition, disagreement, opposition, fight. These are things we all have to deal with in our relationships, no matter who we are. And the good news is that we can learn to deal with them in a healthy, godly way. If you are struggling in a relationship, today is the day to change your mindset. Let God birth a vision in your heart. Ask God to help you and show you what you can do. Start believing God to come up higher in your relationships and become more aware of the causes of strife. Some of the major causes of strife in relationships based on Scriptures from the Bible are the following: 1. Anger Proverbs 29:22 says, “An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered one commits many sins.” Wow! If we are not careful, we can get into lots of trouble when we are angry. The fact is that we all get angry with people, but the Bible says that we can be angry and sin not. It’s what we do when we are angry that makes all the difference. When you are angry with a person, it’s better to keep your mouth closed and cool down before you do or say something you regret — or before you spark a full-fledged fight. How many times have we said something or done something in anger — and later, regretted it? Proverbs 29:11 says, “A foolish person gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.” A foolish person vents all of his anger. You are not going to have many friends if you do that. But a wise person holds back and thinks about his response. A wise person thinks about the feelings of the other person before they lash out. Conflicts can be resolved without a fight and without yelling and screaming at each other. Proverbs 15:1 says that a soft answer turns away wrath. You can have a healthy debate about something without being angry. It may be a heated debate, but at least you are talking it out! The next time you are angry with your wife, co-worker or child — be wise, stay calm, and think before you speak. 2. Ridicule Proverbs 22:10 says, “Drive out the mocker, and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended.” The mocker is someone who ridicules or insults people. One of the worst things you can do to a person, mate, or a child is to ridicule them because of their shortcomings or mistakes of failures. Don’t talk down to people. That’s humiliating to people. It’s a lack of respect. People who ridicule others most likely have low self-esteem problems and just want to make themselves look good. We ought to pray that God will help us focus on the good in people and not their faults. If you are going to pull out your magnifying glass, lets magnify their strengths and not their weaknesses. That’s what you would want people to do for you. 3. Hatred Proverbs 10:12 says, “Hatred stirs up strife; but love covers all sins. Hate is a destroyer.” King Saul hated David, and he lost his Kingdom. Hatred is evil and it destroys you. The person who hates is the victim of hate. It holds you captive. King Saul became the victim of his own hate. You may have been greatly wronged, but don’t allow hatred to take root in you. 4. Gossip Proverbs 26:20 says, “Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down.” Proverbs 16:28 says, “A gossip separates close friends.” Do you know what gossip is? Gossip is repeating idle talk or rumors about the private affairs of others. Don’t gossip about your co-workers or friends. Don’t gossip about people you don’t even know! We all need to stay out of people’s business. We have enough to deal with on or own. Don’t talk negatively about your own children or mate to other people. You will cause them to lose favor with people. If you need to talk to someone, find a godly person to counsel with, but don’t criticize your own family.
Posted on: Tue, 22 Oct 2013 23:10:06 +0000
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