Avoiding Strife

So Abram said to Lot, “Please let there be no strife between you and me, nor between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are brothers.

Genesis 13:8

An unfortunate reality of our world is that strife between people has become very commonplace. We find strife among families, at the workplace, and unfortunately, even in the local church. It has been said that “a quarrel is quickly settled when deserted by one party; there is no battle unless there be two.”^[1] As followers of Jesus, how should we handle strife when it comes up? One helpful example comes from the early days of Abraham.

Like many of the heroes of the faith, the Lord often tested Abraham’s faith in His promises. After Abraham’s failure in Egypt (Genesis 12:4-20), he returned to the place between Bethel and Ai, where he had previously worshiped the Lord. It was there that Abraham continued his journey of faith. In time, Abraham and his nephew Lot grew so great in their flocks, herds, and tents that the land could no longer support them both.

“Riches are often an occasion of strife and contention.”^[2]

In Genesis 13:7, we find that the abundance led to strife between Abraham and Lot’s herdsmen. As head of the clan, Abraham could have simply chosen what he wanted. Instead, we see Abraham’s maturing faith. He knew that the Lord had promised him not only a nation but also land. He trusted the Lord to fulfill His promise without needing to intervene, as he had done previously in Egypt (Genesis 12:10-20). What a lesson for us today. Our overall well-being would improve if we would simply heed this instruction.

“Trusting as the moments fly,

Trusting as the days go by,

Trusting Him, whate’er befall,

Trusting Jesus, that is all.”^[3]

Although strife is commonplace among many people today, followers of Christ should endeavor to avoid conflict as much as possible. We can learn from Abraham that one way to grow more mature in our faith is to desire peace rather than our own desires. By doing so, many of the problems that we encounter will resolve themselves. Many years later Paul would exhort the believers in Philippi to “do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves.”

Lord, while it is hard for me to imagine a time when nothing existed but You, I believe it because Your Word tells me so. Help me to rest in this profound truth, knowing that You can be trusted with my todays, yesterdays, and forevermore. Amen.

[1] George Sweeting, Who Said That? Moody Publishers, 120.

[2] Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible, pg. 28.

[3] Edgard Page. “Trusting Jesus.”