Mom Advice – Find a way to Agree before you Disagree!

//  I think it’s time for some good ‘mom advice’ again. You know those times when your kids are arguing about some topic, and each of them have valid points to say, but they AREN’T listening to each other.

• Perhaps they just want to hear the sound of their own voice.
• Perhaps they’re determined to be ‘right.’
• Perhaps they’ve just stopped listening to what the other is saying because they’re busy thinking about what they’re going to say next.

I especially find it funny (or annoying, I’m not sure which) when they are BOTH saying the same thing, just in different words. Aaaaagh! Makes me crazy!

So, being the SuperMom that I am (yes, that’s sarcasm), I calmly (or sometimes not so calmly) point out that “Before you disagree again, find something the other person is saying that you can agree with. In other words, say something like this,

“I can see your point about……  Makes sense. But have you considered……?”

Really, learning to agree and disagree is a critical part of connecting with other people.

Building bridges.

Communicating clearly.

MOM ADVICE #32 – Find a way to AGREE before you disagree.

But what about you, mom and dad. When was the last time you disagreed with someone and, before even looking for the positive, you were busy thinking of ALL of the reasons it WON’T work?

Worse yet, when was the last time you disagreed with God about something He was saying to you? // And before you even took time to consider His request, your mind was racing with ALL of the reasons you don’t like His idea?

Haha, welcome to my world.

This has been my season of learning to say,

“Father, I can’t see how this is gonna work… but I can agree that You are GOOD, that You’ve always been good, and You only have good plans for us.

“Father I’m not sure Your plan makes sense… but I can agree that Your heart toward us is GOOD, that Your plans are to prosper us and not harm us, and You have a hope and a future for us.

“Father, before I choose to disagree with You and Your Word in my life, I choose to agree that YOU ARE GOOD, AND I CAN TRUST YOU!”

 

My friends, stop and listen for a moment. What is Father actually saying to you?

Choose to AGREE with Him before you disagree.

You can trust Him!

Praying for you today,

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Every Friday, I join an inspiring group of writers to write for FIVE MINUTES on a one-word prompt. No editing. No revising. Just WRITE. This week, the prompt word was AGREE.

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For more information on Five Minute Friday, check out the Five Minute Friday website!