We All Need to Be Conflict Mediators

Make friends with conflict. Through conflict we discover that not everyone thinks like us, not everyone has the same perspective we have, and not everyone feels the same emotional and spiritual needs we feel. The real danger of conflict is ignoring it, or just hoping it will go away on its own. The Scriptures warn about this. Paul writes, “Do not l

Though we may have our own wishes for how the conflict is resolved—especially if the conflict is between family, friends, or co-workers—we need to remember that we are not here to accomplish our own goals. The mediator’s role is to create an environment in which the parties can connect, express their needs, understand each other’s needs, and arrive

To get anywhere in a disagreement, we need to understand the other person’s story well enough to see how their conclusions make sense within it. And we need to help them understand the story in which our conclusions make sense.