On Getting Along

By Holly Scheer

I don’t like being disagreeable. Conflict makes me nervous. The idea of upsetting the people near and dear to me is, well, upsetting.

There’s peace and then there’s false peace. Do you have friends or family that you get along with, but only because you’re silent on things that matter, like the faith?

What can you do when it feels like relationships chug along at the cost of keeping the peace and avoiding contentious topics?

• First, decide where the relationship fits with your vocation. Is it given to you as a wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, Ect to engage this person on this subject?
• Next, pray about it. If it’s a situation you need to engage, pray for wisdom and for your words– and those of your dear one– to be fruitful. If it’s a situation where you aren’t in a place to engage, you still need to pray for your loved one and for some peace about leaving it be.
• Think about how to approach the subject in a way that’ll be helpful and most likely to really be heard. Those close to us know how we communicate and we know how they listen best. Be honest. Be sincere.
• Pray again. You knew I was going to say it, right?
• Keep in mind there’s the reality that eternity matters a whole lot more than the here and now. It does little good to keep earthly peace with someone you love… and to ignore Jesus. Don’t be that person, ok? Jesus died for you and for that loved one and that is what really counts.

Are you a peacekeeper? Do you struggle with when to speak and when to sit back?