Building Bridges
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17
Insight
My husband loves making knives. It’s a process of taking the roughhewn metal, forging and hammering, and making something sleek, beautiful, and useful. I can’t recall when this interest was kindled, but I know that when I’m using one of his hand-crafted chef’s knives for one of my favorite pastimes, cooking, I can be assured it will be sharp & precise. On the edge of the countertop is a rectangular piece of steel, on four rubber pads to hold it steady. It’s the sharpening steel. Now and again, I’ll see my husband methodically running the blade over the steel, ensuring the edge is like a razor. He knows what the ancients did, that a dull edge does more harm than good. When a blade is dull, it takes more force to use and it’s harder to control. This loving gesture, the act of metal against metal to sharpen, is protecting me from potential harm.
It can be the same, person to person. God desires us to be in relationships. He goes before us demonstrating this as the triad of Father, Son, and Spirit. He also created for man a partner so that he would not be alone. But more than just not being alone, there is a need and a purpose to being with others.
Without connection, we are at risk of being trapped in darkness, dull, and in danger. Life seems more difficult when we try to go it alone. In fellowship, however, we are lifted. We expand our viewpoints, see things anew, benefit from perspective, and protect ourselves from evil. We stay sharp and help others do the same. This requires action on our part. Just as blades cannot be restored without friction, we cannot be restored to our full potential without this vital interaction.
In our imperfection, perhaps we’ve gotten hot under the friction of interaction. Maybe we react to someone’s help with knee-jerk defensiveness & withdrawal. Maybe we’ve even lashed back without thinking, unsure of someone’s motives or agenda. Renowned psychologist, Carl Jung reminds us, “The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances; if there is any reaction, both are transformed.” As new creations in Christ, we commit to the process of transformation to look and act more and more like Him. In our weakness, however, we often withhold ourselves for fear of judgement, of criticism, and of rejection. We mistake tough for strong, and thus fall short of the truly loving relationships God has invited us to establish.
“People are lonely,” Joseph Newton states, “because they build walls instead of bridges.” What are we building with our words, our deeds, our expressions? Where do our motives lie? Are we following Christ’s example to lead with love, understanding and compassion?
Sharpening each other sometimes requires that we make the first move. We are to trust with truth, to listen without judgment, to suspend our personal agenda, and above all, to love. It is a journey. It is a commitment to Christ to move past mere acceptance and fully celebrate the transformational connections God so deeply desires for us, His children.
Reflection
How are the reactions you are having in your relationships transforming you and others? Are you becoming more sharp or dull, engaged or withdrawn?
Are there walls in your life where you think there should be bridges?
Prayer
Father, help us to build bridges of empathy, understanding, and compassion. Help us to overcome our instincts to defend and withdraw. Your will for us in Your Word is clear – to live in fellowship, building each other with love. Help us to answer this call, accept this invitation to a life that will make us more than any of us could do on our own. By relating, and lifting each other, help us witness and experience the glory of Your Kingdom. In Your name, Jesus. Amen.
Port City writer Paula Argenio wrote today’s devotional.
