Different perspectives + wrong communication = bad intentions?

To be honest friends, we, Christians, are not great at being united. There is a lot of division in our Christian world. We call each other ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’, but it does not take much to cause total disagreement between us. And often, we start doubting each other’s intentions.
I have seen this happen a few times this past year. With myself and others.  I had a talk with some people in my church community, and I was very angry with them. They hurt me and I hurt them back. They doubted my intentions and I was not sure about their motives. It took time and God’s grace to overcome it all.

Where it all starts

When I analyzed this case, and some other issues I observed this past year, I realized that it all starts somewhere else. It does not start with bad intentions. It starts with two other elements: perspective and communication.

It’s all about perspective

We often look at a situation from different angles.  It’s like looking at a building from different positions: depending on where you stand, you see something different. We should be actually asking ourselves: are we really talking about the same thing? Are we taking time to understand the other person’s perspective?

The art of communication

The second aspect is communication. It is so easy to communicate the wrong way. We use  wrong words, respond strongly to things we are not so sure of, are not sensitive in the way we communicate, and often use the wrong  medium (mail, face-to-face, phone).

Different perspectives + wrong communication = bad intentions?

The combination of different perspectives and wrong ways of communicating can easily lead to the assumption that the other person must be having bad intentions. What are we to do when our unity is being challenged like this?

One

In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus prayed that “we would be one as He and the Father are one, so that the world will know that Jesus is the Son of God”. When we feel that unity between us, as brothers and sisters in Christ is potentially in trouble, and we start having doubts about the other person’s intentions, it is time to start checking our own perspectives and communication. Because being united is not just an option. It is a prerequisite for the world to know Jesus. 

That’s why unity is also one of the core values of Jesus.net. Because we believe that God has called us to reach the world, and to do so by working together as one. Join the movement of Jesus.net. Let us reach out, as one.