Jesus said, “If you enter your place of worship and, about to make an offering, you suddenly remember a grudge a friend has against you, abandon your offering, leave immediately, go to this friend and make things right. Then and only then, come back and work things out with God.” Matthew 5:23-24
Did you read the verse above? Go ahead and read it again. It’s pretty powerful and it tells me friendships are very important to Jesus and to God. Loving our fellow man is more important than worshiping or offerings, we are told here.
And we must make the first step in reconciling even if it is the other person who has the grudge. If we wait for the other person while the other person waits for us, what does that do to bring reconciliation? Most people, Rick Warren tells us, are in conflict when there is an unmet need. It might be a fear or a miscommunication, but something needs to be addressed and with haste.
How many relationships do you need to restore? Do you see a pattern in your broken or hurt relationships? Who will you be inspired to contact thanks to reading and understanding this chapter? Ask God to help you. Tell Him all you are feeling. Tell Him your hurts and your fears and ask for His guidance.
We have finished the first half of the book — the first 20 days. Tomorrow we will discuss how to protect our church with Chapt. 21.
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