“I Disagree!” Devotional #34

 

            How frustrating it is to have disagreements!  A disagreement can lead to even more disagreements if they are not dealt with.  If things are never cleared up what happens next?  A lot of the times what happens is that the relationship will break.  How many friendships have broken up because of disagreements?  How many marriages have ended in divorce because of disagreements?  How many families have suffered because of disagreements?

            Sometimes all it takes to clear up a disagreement is to talk about it with the other person.  Listening to the other person and having them listen to you can do wonders!  The key is to talk not argue.  Something else is needed to clear a disagreement…forgiveness.  The ability to forgive is not always easy but doable.  The only way really to forgive another is to ask the Lord to help us forgive and to help us let the hurt go which is the “forget” part that we hear people say all of the time…”forgive and forget.”  Another key part in clearing up a disagreement is time.  We need to be willing to give each other time to sit and talk things through…time to forgive and heal (“forget”) and time to let time do its thing.  “Time heals all wounds,” to a certain point I agree but healing, true healing can only happen if the truth was stated which is what is needed to clear up a disagreement.

            There’s an example of Paul and Barnabas in the Bible having a disagreement.  When they were planning out their second missionary trip Barnabas told Paul that he wanted to take John (also known as Mark) and Paul disagreed.  Their disagreement was so bad they went their separate ways! 

            Acts 15:36-41, “Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.”  Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work.  They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord.  He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.”

            It’s amazing to me that these two men of God had such a “sharp disagreement.”  They had gone through a lot together and accomplished a lot.  Even though they had such a great history together they could not see eye to eye on the issue of John.  Paul didn’t want to risk being abandoned by John again whereas Barnabas wanted to give him another chance.  Barnabas ended up going on a separate mission trip with John.  Can you imagine how John must have felt?  It was because of his decision to leave Pamphylia when the circumstances grew difficult that changed Paul’s mind of him.  He no longer believed that John had what it took to be a dependable missionary.

            Thankfully the story doesn’t end there.  Years later while Paul was under house arrest in Rome he wrote a letter to Timothy and in it he mentions John Mark.  2 Timothy 4:11, “Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.”  In Philemon 1:23-24 Paul mentions Mark’s name too, “Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you, as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow workers.” 

            Disagreements will occur.  Reconciliations can follow if we allow them.  As we see in Paul’s case he gave Mark another chance.  My dear friend I know firsthand how much a disagreement can cause discord, hurt, and or frustration.  I’ve had situations where reconciliation never occurred, relationships were broken and hurts took longer to heal from.  I also know that when there is reconciliation the problem is resolved and the relationship can grow and blossom into what the Lord would want it to.  So, like Paul, we too should give another chance and resolve the problems through prayer.  If the Lord’s will is for the two parties to split then that’s what needs to happen.   

 

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*If you would like to read this same devotional in Spanish or know of someone that would please visit my Spanish blog at www.ministerioreflejandolaverdad.blogspot.com