Have you ever felt strongly about something? You took a stance on something that was controversial. Your firm belief in your perspective gave you confidence and courage to speak out.
Have you ever realized you may be wrong? It’s like a punch to the gut. The realization that maybe it isn’t quite as cut and dry as you made it out to be. That sinking feeling, flood of memories of all the conversations you have had about that topic. All of a sudden you want to just take it all back.
We are all unique. We see things differently. Perceive ideas differently. Our varying life experiences color the way we look at different situations.
Now more than ever, we are flooded with everyone else’s perspective. We exist in a time of many words. From every direction is an idea, an opinion, a suggestion, a critique. There are always voices that agree with you. And a plethora of voices that do not.
Even as Christians, we come from different walks of life. Our experiences and our understanding vary. We can read one passage and have an abundance of differing thoughts on the subject.
This is a real battle for me. I am a people pleaser to the core. Especially in the case of people I care about. Desperately wanting affirmation and confirmation. So when my view is challenged it shakes me. Or when I realize that someone does not agree, I rethink everything. Days can be spent re-evaluating from every side. Simultaneously trying to defend my own idea to myself, and completely questioning everything about it.
If you listen to every voice, you will go crazy. There will always be someone who agrees with you. And there will always be an opposing view. If you allow yourself to listen to all of them, you will feel bounced around like a beach ball and you won’t know which way is up.
There is a truth that is truer than true. One that does not change based on your opinions or your feelings and preferences. That is the True Word of God. The Gospel and the truth of the scripture. It is our rock and our foundation. It is our guide and our definition. Our Perspective. The anchor in a world full of perspectives and opinions and words. When we spin out of control into what feels like a universe of differing opinions and “facts” that seem to contradict each other, it is the unmoving, never changing cornerstone.
We will all have differences. Things we are passionate about, personal convictions and preferences. Those won’t always look like others ideals.
There will also be times where we can all read the same truth and interpret it differently. While I may have no idea how one person got to the conclusion they did, I cannot believe truly that I have also interpreted everything completely correctly either. Because if I did then maybe my life wouldn’t be such a rollercoaster of lessons being learned and mistakes being corrected.
We will always see things differently. There will always be things we don’t completely agree on. But instead of letting that separate us, we can choose to step towards eachother. So often differing opinions lead to defensiveness, criticism, or isolation due to self consciousness. So many are threatened by people’s strong opinions on social media that we steer away from actually face to face conversation out of fear or stereotyping.
Do not get me wrong… there will be times that people are wrong. True truth also means real falsehood exists. At times, we may be asked to stand up for Truth when people are blatantly wrong, or causing others to stumble away from Truth.
But in those instances, correction or confrontation should always be in the form of humble gentleness.
In other times, it’s merely an issue of preference or conviction. Or maybe differences come from a lack of experience in a situation. Differing opinions are not always a threat. But an opportunity to come together in grace and patience. To love one another in the difficult and confusing. To champion each other and sharpen each other as iron sharpens iron. To gain from other’s perspectives. To open a line of communication, respect, and trust.
We should not fear (or resent) those who think differently. We should trust that if we are all seeking Truth from the true source that we will find it. We can link arms and seek it together. Our differences do not have to separate us. Because it is easy to love those who are just like us. But we are called to love all our brothers and sisters in Christ. To lift them up. To bear with them in the process we call sanctification. Trusting the Lord is at work, revealing truth and sharpening us all together.