There was a fight, of sorts, in the NBA this past week between two teammates at their team’s practice time. It is probably getting way more press than it deserves because teammates in competitive sports fight all the time. They compete against each other in practice and they are constantly trash talking as they work to be a starter. The reason it is getting so much attention is because someone videoed the event, and it is all over the news, and because the Golden State Warriors won the NBA championship this last season, so it automatically gets way more scrutiny than it would have with any other team. This whole thing reminds me of a sermon that I have been working on entitled, “How to Get Along with Anybody, Even your Mother-in-law.” The mother-in-law part was added for humor, my mother-in-law was easy to get along with except when we played pinocle against each other.

So in my sermon, there are six keys to getting along with anybody; (1) Never trash talk. From what is being written about the altercation between the basketball teammates in the news is that practice was very competitive and intense, and the two players involved were trash-talking a lot to each other. The problem with insults is that once started; they have to escalate, and sooner or later someone will go over the line and a fight, usually a verbal fight, but sometimes a physical one is the result. Actually the way I am describing the rule in my sermon is “Always Talk Nice.” I suggest that we compete with others being the one who affirms, encourages, compliments, and praises more than anyone else.

Our self-worth is affected by what we think others think of us. A person who makes us feel important is a person that we like and we will tend to get along well with them. Building others up with our words is a discipline, and a learned skill that anybody can learn if they see the value in it and work at it.

The main point of this rule is that getting along with others is much more proactive than reactive. Proactive is when we take the lead in shaping the atmosphere in relationships. Reactive is when we simply put up with the irritating behavior of others.