He really desired to purchase it, but I wouldn’t give in. I persisted and argued until he finally said, “All right, just do what you want.”
For a few minutes, I felt smug and congratulated myself on the victory. Then, right there in the mall, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart and said, “You think you won, but you lost.”
It pierced my heart. I knew right then that I didn’t walk in love at all. If Dave really liked that picture, there were plenty of places we could have hung it. At the very least, I could have been more loving in how I handled the entire conversation.
You see, pursuing peace requires compromise. We should never compromise our beliefs or what God tells us to do, but we will be required to compromise our own wants and desires in order to truly love others and keep strife out of our relationships.
See Also: 3 Minutes in the Word That Can Help You Knock Out the Enemy
Living in peace will also require us to sacrifice our need to be right. We all like to be right and win every argument, but being right is highly overrated! We may win the battle, but when we insist on having our own way at the expense of a relationship, we can do tremendous damage.
Always remember, real love gives up its right to be right. If you truly want to have a healthy marriage or strong relationships with others, I recommend that you learn to say (and sincerely mean) this statement: “I think I’m right but I may be wrong.”
