One of the things that I have learned is that it is much easier to meet a person on their terms than to try to make them meet you on yours. Often times the willingness to give in to the other person’s wishes, to meet them on “their turf,” makes it possible for you to have conversations that would otherwise never take place.

I thought of that recently when reading through Matthew 18:

Matthew 18:15–18  “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. “I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.”

When I was serving as pastor, if I heard that someone was upset with me, I would go to that person as soon as possible. Many times I did not want to go, but I did it anyway. And most of the time the fact that I took the initiative to go see that person made it possible for us to be reconciled.

I could have taken the attitude, “If they are upset with me, they should come and talk to me. They should meet me in my office. I don’t have the problem, they do!”  How do you think that would have worked out?

Where would we all be if God had not come down here and met us on our turf?  He didn’t compromise His principles, He didn’t join us in sinning. He came down here and lived the life we should have lived, doing so for our sake. He then offered that life of innocence and perfection as the payment for all of our sin. In His humanity, Jesus didn’t want to do it. But He did it anyway because it needed to be done.

Luke 22:42 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

Lord, guide me to take the initiative to make peace with my brothers and sisters in Christ. Amen.