What do you do to build a bridge between yourself and:
- someone who disagrees with you
- someone who has hurt you
- someone you haven't forgiven yet
- someone with a different political affiliation
- someone with a different religious belief
Throughout our lives, we're given many opportunities to build these bridges. We're called to connect as humans, and creating a space that connects you to someone you wouldn't expect opens that path for new experiences to travel along. It's taken me anywhere from a month to two and a half years to build one bridge. There have been times where I've scratched my head staring at the blueprints to get it going, and times where I built it without even realizing. Maybe you could say the same about yours.
The funny thing about having to build a bridge is that you need space for it to fit. You need to release enough of the negative experiences, hurtful comments, or offensive beliefs to make room for a connection to be there. And isn't that true in other aspects of our lives too? What are you clearing space for? What are you getting rid of that's hoarding up the space in your heart?
So, as we continue on our journey, I pray that you will spend time thinking about the bridges in your life - ones you've already built, or are thinking of building. What is your process for building your bridge? What did you pray for? Did you find an unexpected outcome?
Here's some of my favorite comments from this week's Monday Night Live on this topic. Maybe they can offer you some inspiration as well.
"Be willing to really listen to another's point of view, and possibly have your mind changed."
- Rachel
"We can build the bridge if we walk on His love. What if before everything we say, we think 'how would Jesus respond?' He's the strongest bridge we have to link us together."
- Christie
"I think we have to be willing to show grace to each other, as grace has been shown to us. It's hard and I am far from perfect at it, but it's a place to start."
- Holly
Check out last week's Monday Night Live here!
