Being Right or Loving?

In John 13:35 Jesus says, "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." I am just as guilty or more guilty than the next person with one-upping, and just bluntly knowing that I am right(obvi). All the time. If you throw a compliment my way, I will one-up you all day, rather than just accepting it. Maybe it is because I doubt myself, my worth, my accomplishments, my qualities, my talents. Or maybe, I tell myself, I am just being nice, and trying to return the compliment with another. Either way, I should not be satisfied with myself, because I should always strive to be more like Jesus, but on the other hand, I am made in His image, like Him, thus I should be content with what He has given me to work with.

 And when it comes to arguments, well they are usually a waste of time and accomplish nothing, but they are bound to happen. When in the midst of an argument, I find myself thinking, what is going to change anything if I win this argument, or even more importantly if I lose? My life will not change, my mind will still be set on my initial standpoint, thus this argument is literally a waste of breathe and time we could be doing something to build each other up instead of trying to tear the other person down. Thus, I choose love. I love to argue sometimes, but I love to love more. Nothing brings me more pleasure than throwing a thick layer of love on another person. It really is the little things; backing down from an argument, choosing to put the discussion to rest, making a point of showing the other person that regardless of the outcome, you love each other and are willing to bury this discussion. We as Christians fumble through life just like the non-believer does, but we have a Rock to lean on, His Word to turn to, fellow believers to keep us accountable, so many resources to turn to for help. What more could we possibly need than the Man who created us?

We need to spend more time listening, and less time arguing. More time caring for others and their needs, and less time proving them wrong. We need to pray for a sense of humility. Pray for understanding when we are confronted with people of different views than our own. The God whom we put our trust in is able to show others when they are wrong in a far better and more healingly way than any of us ever could. Let Him handle them, and you just love.