How
to handle differences in opinion – without losing your cool and without compromising
your beliefs.
It
is important to grasp the fact that people, in general, tend to be opinionated
by virtue of their upbringing (family or religious background) and exposure to
different schools of thought.
An
issue can be seen in so many different ways. People tend to think they are
right until another viewpoint is presented: “The one who states his case first
seems right, until the other comes and examines him” (Proverbs 18:17).
We
need to remember that one may win an argument but it is useless if one loses a
long-term relationship. More: http://limpohann.blogspot.com/2012/07/winning-battle-losing-war.html
Yes,
by all means, strive to live peaceably with all believers. We should not
identify ourselves by our denominational stance – not allow these differences
to create walls between us.
However,
we also need to bear in mind this: While it is important to be humble and
tolerant to get along well with others, we should not compromise the truth for
the sake of unity.
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ON FLEXIBILITY
Trees look strong compared with the wild reeds in the field. But
when the storm comes the trees are uprooted, whereas the wild reeds, while
moved back and forth by the wind, remain rooted and are standing up again when
the storm has calmed down.
Flexibility is a great virtue. When we cling to our own
positions and are not willing to let our hearts be moved back and forth a
little by the ideas or actions of others, we may easily be broken. Being like
wild reeds does not mean being wishy-washy. It means moving a little with the
winds of the time while remaining solidly anchored in the ground. A humorless,
intense, opinionated rigidity about current issues might cause these issues to
break our spirits and make us bitter people. Let's be flexible while being
deeply rooted.
– Henri Nouwen
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