Being a bit of a wordsmith, I can come up with a million different ways to describe something, except sometimes the truth. There's once again, no cute story here. Just someone finally looking in the mirror. And maybe putting someone else in a headlock until they look too.
I like to think of myself as a peacemaker, doing whatever needs to be done in every situation to keep everyone happy. Another word for that is coward. Or maybe an enabler. I have allowed people to behave in a less than loving way as a means to keeping the peace. I have allowed an ugliness to thrive because I was afraid of confronting it.
Walking a tightrope only results in sore muscles, because you can only hold the pose for so long. Tonight I jumped, not caring if there was a net below or not. And boy, did it feel great. But, and it is a really big but, anger does not produce the righteousness of God. But a righteous anger does. There is a difference. Not standing for injustice and inequality, but doing it in a godly way, has miraculous results.
We had a miracle tonight in my house. God is definitely at work. We don't always like the means He gives us to grow, but when we handle conflict in the way He intends, miracles happen. Growth happens. Love has a chance to flourish.
I too like to keep the peace and was shocked the first time I heard Ken Sande call that "peacefaking". It troubled me to think that I was actually wrong to act like things were okay when they weren't in order to keep people happy around me - and with me. Good lesson, one I am constantly learning as well. May God be glorified in all this learning!!!!
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