A while back, I heard a disagreement between two friends. I knew these two were having difficulty getting along, and now I was hearing it in real time. But what could I do? Their disagreement had nothing to do with me.
This wasn’t the first time I’d been outside a fight, looking in. I see church dynamics where this person is upset with that person, or this family has a bone to pick with those two other families — but I’m somehow unaffected. I’ve had coworkers who are at odds. I have friends who no longer get along with other friends. But again, it doesn’t really concern me.
It can be hard to understand how to approach conflict when we aren’t directly involved. Sometimes you can ignore it, sometimes you can’t — at least, not without seeming out of touch with what your friends are working through.
That’s the key word, isn’t it? Through. How can we help our friends work through their disagreements and return to being friends? How can we help everyone get…
