I needed to fire my painter and it was going to be ugly.
I’d hired him to paint my house. It was a quaint little place under tall trees and blue skies … but it was also the color of spoiled cream and had more greenery on the roof tiles than in the garden. It was purchased as a rental and until it was fixed up, I was a little freaked out about having two mortgages. Every day the house was empty, it cost me hundreds of dollars.
But I was almost done. The new floors were in, the bathrooms fixed, the kitchen and laundry rewired. All that was left was the paint.
The painter was weeks behind schedule. The money I gave him for supplies wasn’t spent on supplies. Every day he’d arrive later and leave earlier until I was lucky to see him for a couple hours in the afternoon.
I played out the conversation in my mind. I could already hear his shouts and curses. As a Jesus follower, I’m supposed to be a peace maker. How do I model love and forgiveness at the same time as justice and discipline? I invited the Lord to be part of the conversation; maybe God could use this upcoming conflict for good.
“Maybe?” I felt the Lord chuckle.
I realized that Jesus reached people through conflict. He was surrounded by it his entire time on earth. He clashed with the religious and powerful, with the regular people who wanted to make him king, and even with his family who thought he wasn’t taking care of himself. His conflict-filled life ended in a horrific conflict-filled death.
And yet 2000 years later he is the most influential person who ever lived and is renowned as a peacemaker. I thought a long time about why. He stepped into strife for the sake of the strife-maker.
I hate conflict, but what if it was the only window for the gospel into a person’s life?
Author W.M. Paul Young says that when people need to express themselves, sometimes anger is the only language they know. If you can listen, really listen, and not take offense, they’ll tell you the things that are important to them. And then, God willing, you can bring Jesus into their hurt to help them.
My painter arrived several hours late, overflowing with excuses. He had more excuses for why to leave early that day. Oh, and could I pay him for the work he hadn’t done yet?
I fired him.
He thundered and threatened but it all just washed past me. The idea that conflict was a valid way to bring Jesus into someone’s life made it all kind of exciting. I knew the Lord was part of the conversation because I was gentle yet firm and when it finally blew over, my painter broke down and wept. He told me about his abusive childhood, his alcohol problem, and how his life needed to change. We talked for a long time about tragedy and pain. He knew my wife of 19 years had died a few months earlier. I was able to tell him about the peace and joy God brought into my life in spite of the horrible things that happened.
It’s been almost a decade. I don’t know if my words made any difference and if he allowed God to change his life. I hope so. But I know the conversation I had with God changed my life. Conflict isn’t something to be shied away from. God can use it to touch a person as effectively as any other means.