The Honest Option...

Managing relationships can be a challenge, unless you are comfortable to do it in the scriptural way…
“Don’t secretly hate your neighbor. If you have something against him, get it out in the open, otherwise you are an accomplice in his guilt. Don’t seek revenge or carry a grudge.” ~Lev. 19:17-18
People disappoint people. Inside of every relationship there will be let-downs. All of our imperfections have to show up somewhere and it’s inside close relationships where they surface. When these let-downs occur, there are only so many things we can do in response. We can secretly hate them, we can carry a grudge, we can ‘get even’ or we can be honest with them about how their actions affected us. Social scientists have long observed that children instinctively take the verbal honest route when they are disappointed by another’s actions. But by the time they reach adult-hood, our culture has shamed the honesty out of them. They then are left to pursue one of these other options, which are simply not helpful, especially for the one who has been wronged. Many adults live between the shame our society places on honest reply’s and the inward frustration of not being able to get a relationship repaired. Maybe the Old Testament got it right for all times. Maybe the scriptural answer is the way mature people are supposed to repair relational fractures. When we consider all possible reactions to a relational ‘let-down’, THE HONEST OPTION looks like the best one. ~Verlon