Future Family (3) – Common Cause

[no audio for this week]

We are in the third week of our series Future Family and we have said that since the first week when it comes to family there is a tension that we all feel – the tension between what’s real and what’s ideal. We all know and want an ideal family, yet in the midst of what we are experiencing as real, we are often tempted to lose sight of the ideal. Therefore though out this series we will be reminded again and again to never lose sight of the ideal, because Jesus came and he pointed us toward an ideal. As his followers, we really don’t have any other choice but to strive for the ideal. But when we fall short and we often do, we are encouraged that His grace is always sufficient for us.

So today we are going to tackle another familiar family topic – conflict. Have you ever experienced conflict in your family? When it comes to family, perhaps the only thing we all have in common is conflict. Family conflict is so difficult for us emotionally because even when you win an argument in your family, you don’t really win anything isn’t it? Winning an argument never leads to resolving a conflict. So what should we do? What if there was a way to resolve family conflict by dealing with it at its source? I pray that this message will be a helpful one to you and your family.

Moving Forward

The source of your external conflict is an undetected internal conflict that is spinning out of control. Acknowledge it so you can stop blaming others for your unhappiness and discontentment. It may be the only way that enables you to surrender yourself to God, who knows what’s best for you.

As long as you blame others for your unhappiness, you will always be unhappy.

Discussion Questions

1. What did conflict look like in your family when you were growing up?

2. How do you handle family conflict? Are you a peacemaker, sulker, stuffer, litigator, or screamer?

3. Who is suffering right now because you aren’t getting your way? What do you want from him or her?

4. What can this group do to help you follow through on telling that person, “You know what part of the problem is here? I’m not getting what I want”?