Wednesday, January 30, 2013

I'm right - you're wrong! Really?


Good Day Families!
 
In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul writes that love "keeps no record of wrongs".  I don't know about you, but I didn't always put that into practice when Kasey and Keeley were younger.  As a matter of fact, there were times I had a REALLY GOOD LIST of stuff they did wrong!   But, of course, I was perfect.  I never messed up. 
 
I was so off base! 
 
 
We are all sinners, we all make mistakes and bad decisions and do stupid things.  But our heavenly Father does not love us less nor does he point the finger of blame.  None of us are righteous, not even one; we all fall short of God's glory.  But if we are faithful and confess our sins, we will be forgiven and our sins will be thrown into the deepest ocean and totally forgotten.  (How is that for some combined theology!)
 
Sometimes we don't do that very well in our families.  We fall into the "blame game" working harder to assign fault than to work together in love to reason and resolve the issue.  Love is so much about putting the needs of others ahead of our own needs.  Love is about finding and rejoicing in our commonality rather than arguing over our differences.  One sure thing we all have in common is our sinful nature.  Another is that we have Jesus Christ.  His death on the cross freed us from our sins and made us pure again.   Isaiah 1:18 tells us  "Come now, and let us reason together," says the Lord, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool."
 
As we have discussed many times, parents and children mess up.  They do stupid things and make bad decisions and mistakes - AND there are consequences as a result.  But love will endure before, during and after.  Our love for one another can get us through even the most difficult situations.  Rather than pointing out what we did wrong and assigning blame, let's point to God's word for a better way to build our families and get through tough times.
 
 
Scott
 


LOVE ONE ANOTHER Day 7 > > > Finger Pointing

Romans 14:13

Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.

There is plenty of finger pointing going on in most of our families. “She did this!” or “He did that!” or “He did the other thing first!” Sometimes we try to minimize our sin by criticizing the actions of others, but it only makes things worse. Proverbs 15:1 teaches us “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stir up anger.”

When was the last time finger pointing brought peace into your home?

If the Apostle Paul were to show up in the middle of a finger pointing session at your house or mine he would say in a stern voice, “Stop that! Stop passing judgment on one another! Instead, help one another be more like Jesus!” Paul knew that the only thing that comes from this condemnation of one another is disunity, disharmony, and disrespect…or to put it simply, the opposite of loving one another. So when conflict arises, how should we as Christians respond?

First, we must decide ahead of time that we are going to pursue love and peace in our homes above all else. Second, we have to be compassionate with each other. Perhaps your sibling or parent or spouse is having a really tough day and what they really need from you is just to love on them rather than point your finger at them. Finally, we must avoid stirring the pot of hard feelings by being as loving towards one another as we possibly can. It helps to remember the acronym JOY: Jesus, Others, Yourself.

APPLICATION: Discuss how your family needs to handle conflict when it arises. Think of some recent examples and then apply Romans 14:13 to them to see how you could have resolved them in a Christ like way. 

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