Avoiding Strife

"The beginning of strife is like releasing water; Therefore stop contention before a quarrel starts."  (Proverbs 17:14)

Have you ever had anyone complain at you and annoy you to the point that you wanted to answer with an angry response?  Well if you do, be prepared, because that's the beginning of sometimes a very pointless argument that just harms whoever you are arguing with as well as yourself!

Suggestion?  Say something funny to diffuse the situation, or just don't say anything, keep it zipped!  If it's your spouse, you may want to just take them in your arms and say something like, "I'm sorry your upset, what did I do?  If I did something to upset you, I apologize."  Even if you did nothing wrong, it will open the discussion that is a mature conversation and therefore saves you from making the situation worse!

It might be that your husband/wife had a rough day and doesn't mean to take it out on you, but you must avoid strife at all costs, because it is sinful!  The bible says "Be angry, and sin not." (Ephesians 4:26).  Let us love one another as Christ first loved us!  He's already taken every sin, past, present, and future onto himself for us.  He felt every drunk alcoholic, every panic attack, every tear, every bit of anger, out of an entire world of people who had lived, who were living and who would live in the future!  He took all of our sin upon himself.  When I think of how that must have felt, I get a panic attack myself and wind up in tears!

We need to learn, especially us married couples, how to respond to strife when it comes towards us.  Recognize the emotion as a trick of the devil to cause you to fight with your spouse!   This is a sin, and you must avoid it at all costs, because it can cause permanent damage to a relationship if you don't recognize it for what it truly is. An attack from the very depths of hell.  Satan wants to destroy your marriage, your friendship, your job situation, on and on....just see it for what it truly is and do not let it happen!

Let us love, be happy, and not let strife enter any area of our lives because it puts up walls between us and the Lord. 

Answer your wife's griping with a hug to try to make her feel loved and appreciated.  Tell her the house looks nice, and that she is beautiful, even if she has flour in her hair from fixing dinner!  Don't gripe back if you had a bad day too!  You can fix both of your bad days with your response, or you can make it worse with your response!  But if you do get angry, don't go to bed until you've apologized!

You ladies, do the same.  If your husband comes home in a rotten mood and starts to growl at everyone, walk over to him give him a hug and tell him how much you love him and appreciate what he has to put up with at work every day to provide for your family and ask if there's anything you can do to make it better.  Rub his back and shoulders, give him a kiss, hold him in your arms, show your love and appreciation and I mean, I don't care how bad your day was?  If you respond to an angry word with love, it changes everything for "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."  (Proverbs 15:1).

You choose?  It's up to you!   Just remember?  The person with the strife is crying out for love.  Answer strife with love.  It changes everything!