Try This at Home
So how do you learn after your last crisis?
Start by trying to isolate how you felt and how you behaved.
This list is nowhere near complete, but here’s what I look for in me:
Blame
Accusation
Defensiveness
Anger
Jealousy
Boastfulness
Envy
Spitefulness
Denial
Resentment
Divisiveness I caused
And the list goes on.
When I spot those in myself—as horrible as they are—I need to work through them.
How do I work through them? How should you work through them?
1. Pray.
Get down on your knees and confess your sin to God. He’s the one who heals, restores and makes hearts new.
2. Read the Scripture through a fresh lens.
Too many people read the Bible because they’re supposed to. I read it sometimes as a character study in what to do and what not to do.
For example, I just finished reading through the life of Kings Saul and David. Neither was perfect, but Saul consistently displayed emotional immaturity in his leadership. He shrank from his responsibilities as king. He was perpetually insecure to the point of paranoia.
David, while imperfect, showed incredible self-discipline and clearly understood delayed gratification in his early days, refusing to lift his hand against the Lord’s anointed.
I can learn from that.
