My 2011 Ford F150 was totaled in the accident I was in last week. While I am looking for another rig to drive, someone in the church loaned me a Dodge diesel pickup truck. Several people have commented that I finally came to my senses and quit driving a Ford. That is irritating and very offensive to a long-time faithful Ford guy. So what should I do about that? I can’t let them get away with saying something so rude without retaliation! Most of you know that I am kidding about the Ford thing, but over the years, I have seen and heard of many serious conflicts that were more silly than that. As I have been involved in trying to help people resolve conflicts over the years, I realized that issues, information, views, and beliefs get blown way out of proportion by people’s repetitious thinking and retelling of events. Most conflicts are rarely as serious or consequential as they seem. I gave you my first rule of dealing with conflicts I am involved with in yesterday’s Blog, and here is number two. 

2. I give people the benefit of the doubt. They probably see things differently. They may not have gotten all the information. They forgot some information. I do everything I can to reduce the seriousness of the problem and even make light of it. Most issues are gone in a year if someone doesn’t stir things up again, and they are gone because they weren’t that big a deal in the first place. Our imaginations working in a negative direction can always make a mountain from a molehill. One of my thought processes is,” If I knew without a doubt that Jesus was coming back to take us to heaven in one year, how much would I fuss about? Not much, if anything. The key for me is to forgive anything and everything and forget about it. But what if it happens again? It rarely does. Make that assumption rather than, “Maybe it will.” Tomorrow, I will write about my third guiding principle, “It is much more essential to maintain healthy relationships than to be right or the winner. “