Conflict-Free Living

Today Eternity is one week old. I can't believe it has been a week already.

 

It is interesting how when you start studying a spiritual topic you either become grossly aware of the issue all around you or the issue becomes exaggerated in your life to test you. I am currently reading "Conflict-Free Living" by Joyce Meyer and I feel like conflict has become all that more evident in everyday life. Last night our Landlord came by to collect rent. Many of you who read my blog regularly know that we have been having troubles with our landlord. We had no fridge for 2 weeks, we lost all our food and he refused to do anything about it and still does. We had the fridge 'fixed', even though it is not totally fixed, it still leaks water, but at least it is keeping things cold now. But we paid for it. Our screen door is still broken, the kitchen sink leaks, we have no hot water in the kitchen, the shower leaks water all over the floor, the washing machine floods our deck every load, and not all the electrical outlets work.  I am incredibly frustrated because our landlord doesn't care and says he won't do anything about it.

You would think that the easy solution would be just to move, but it really isn't that easy. We have been here long enough to know that it is hard to find good landlords and an apartment that isn't completely filthy and in need of a lot of work when you move in. At this time we really don't want to move again and start over.

Anyway, I had to keep myself in the room last night and let Patrick talk to the Landlord because I was bound to say and/or do something that I really shouldn't. Patrick is far softer than I am. I would have given the landlord "a piece of my mind." Anyway, this is clearly a conflict, one of the many, that seem to have popped up forcing me to put to practice the lessons from 'Conflict-free Living."

One of solutions in Conflict-Free Living is to pray for your enemies. Not such a new concept, as it is a well-known Biblical principal, but I will admit that I am struggling with how to pray for this man and his wife. Every time I go to pray I find that I start dwelling on the negative and getting myself all worked up. Then the thought comes to mind, "pray for him." And I respond to myself, "Oh yeah." But the only word that comes to mind is "God." "Teach me Lord to pray for those I am in conflict with."