Last night I watched our dog chase one of the cats down the stairs.
Usually they get along pretty well. They often share a couch. But all that changed in a moment. One minute we're all enjoying a quiet evening at home, the next minute animals are pounding down the stairs and interrupting the cone of silence (minus the drone of the TV).
I watched the dog's tail disappear from my line of sight and asked myself, "Should I intervene?"
To which I quickly answered myself, "Nah. They'll be alright."
I'm motherly that way.
I spent the better part of the next thirty fifteen five seconds wondering why there was conflict all of a sudden. Was mocking involved? Did the cat pull the dog's tail? Or did our sweet Dulce think that chasing a lazy fat cat was a fun way to pass the evening?
It reminded me of a picture that made its way into my inbox recently.
No matter. Conflict is a fact of life. It comes and goes. When it comes to the animals, I'm happy as long as there's no bloodshed.
But it's not so straight-forward when the conflict involves real live human beings, is it?
The day-to-day conflict we deal with may not involve bloodshed, but it can harm in so many other ways.
Hurt feelings.
Ended relationships.
Damaged reputations.
Missed opportunities.
And that's just within the church.
Conflict Within the Church
In the last few weeks we've seen that we cannot rest unless we are free from fear, desire, and spiritual illness. Another factor interrupting our rest is conflict.
In A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, Phillip Keller describes the conflict and jealousy rife within a flock as sheep establish their places of dominance. The sheep are unhappy and irritable as the tension mounts, even to the point of losing weight.
Who knew that sheep society was so complicated?
Or that it would look so much like the culture within churches?
If we were all perfectly honest, we would have to admit that we have participated in or been affected by conflict within our church circles. Maybe it's the matter of locking in a leadership position, belonging to a particular social group, or participating in gossip. Before we know it we're involved in Drama. Our cell phones are glued to our ears as we discuss who said what and when they said it.
DRAMA.
The Antidote to Drama
Phillip Keller, an experienced shepherd, describes the affect of his presence on conflicting sheep:
"...whenever I came into view and my presence attracted their attention, the sheep quickly forgot their foolish rivalries and stopped their fighting. The shepherd's presence made all the difference in their behavior."
So the million dollar question is: How should our relationships within the church be affected after we experience the presence of Jesus?
We experience the presence of Jesus when we enter into true worship. We can sing the songs and raise our hands, but if we walk away from a worship service still nursing grudges, we have not truly entered into worship. We've only gone through the motions.
So how do we enter into true worship?
"God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." (John 4:24)
True worship is an outgrowth of a deep relationship with our Savior. We can nurture this relationship in small ways:
- Begin each day reading a chapter out of the Bible.
- Pay attention during the sermon.
- When singing hymns or worship songs, focus on the words and mean them.
- Pray by pouring out your heart to God.
It can be summed up by Philippians 4:8 - "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
By nurturing our relationship with our Shepherd, we promote health and healing in our relationships with other believers.
Now it's your turn - tell us what you have found to be effective in nurturing your relationship with Jesus.
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