Key Strategies for Navigating Conflict

Especially in our closest and most important relationships, conflict has the potential to become volatile and cause severe, lasting damage. But in Christ, our conflict has the potential to display the grace of God and actually strengthen the relationship. This redemptive fruit is not automatic, though. We must depend on God to help us approach conflict in a new way that is so opposite from the natural bent of our flesh. While navigating conflict in this new way is a complex matter, I would sum it up in two key strategies: love and listen.

Love

Be committed to unity. Love doesn't keep score or manipulate. Try to approach conflict with a view toward cooperation, rather than seeing it as a competition. You're on the same team; you're sitting on the same side of the table. Let your communication be characterized by humility and selflessness. Love and honor each other as people who are created in God's image and given value by Him.

Listen

Usually in conflict, you will find a clashing of perspectives and desires. Each person is coming at it from a different angle and is interpreting things according to their own interests and experiences. And each party views a particular aspect as the most important consideration or most pressing concern. So be grace-centered in your approach by seeking to understand each person's point of view and interests. Rather than assuming you know how the other thinks and feels, ask clarifying questions with a desire to truly understand their heart. Then respond with empathy and compassion. Lay down arms, seek God, and work together to reach a wise solution that honors God above all.

Doing conflict from a place of love and grace is hard. We won't always get it right; we will often hurt those we love. But we can cultivate a pattern of humble confession and merciful forgiveness, and keep moving forward together as we learn a redemptive way to walk through conflict.

Recommended Resource

My perspective has been influenced by Ken Sande's book Peacemaking for Families. I highly recommend it as a valuable resource for understanding communication and conflict in relationships.