How to Live a Meaningful Lifeنموونە

Loving Others You Disagree With

One way we can add more meaning to our lives is by meeting with more people who are different from us. Because when we’re humble enough to admit we don’t have all the answers, we start to realize that we can learn a lot from other people. 

It’s tempting to avoid conflict altogether or to hang out only with people who are like you. But when we expand our world to include more of the body of Christ and more people God created, we gain more empathy, perspective, and understanding—all of which are vitally important. 

Chris, a former rocket scientist for NASA who now works for YouVersion as an engineer, has a lot of experience with this topic. One day, he realized someone he worked with didn’t believe that Americans went into space. For a former NASA employee, that’s a pretty strong statement, and it made Chris wonder what the other person thought of him. 

Normally someone who avoids conflict, Chris wanted to avoid the issue externally, even though he was angry internally. But when he did some research, he learned about this philosophical theory called epistemic contextualism. It’s a big theory, but basically it says that something can only be understood in its original context.

When he read about that theory, he discovered that he and the person he disagreed with didn’t have to yell at one another or argue on social media about who was right. Instead, he could understand that the context his coworker was coming from was different than his own. While he still may not agree with their perspective, he retains the friendship, because he has empathy and grace for where that person is coming from.

Now, this doesn’t mean that we can’t ever assert our beliefs or that we can all have our own truths. But it does mean that when we disagree, we can fight the urge to get defensive by asking questions, being curious, and taking a humble, others-first attitude. 

As Chris wisely explained, “We’re not asked to tolerate people; we’re asked to love them.” 

Pastor Craig Groeschel says it like this, “We don’t have to agree on everything, but we can always be loving.” 

So, if we want to have meaningful, others-first lives, we have to accept that we will run into disagreements—and we get to embrace those disagreements as opportunities for us to gain new perspectives and to practice loving one another. 

Pray: God, thank You for Your grace. When I struggle to understand someone’s point of view, give me the patience to listen graciously, and the humility to ask questions. Show me how to live in peace with others, and help me love others well—no matter what. In Jesus’ name, amen.