I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord. — Philippians 4:2
Disagreements are something that is guaranteed in life. We are all different people who think differently about a wide variety of situations that we face. How I look at something will differ from how you look at something.
As part of these situations, we often have to interact or work with others. That can cause a clash of viewpoints and ideas. The solution you have may not be the solution I would like. These disagreements can come between family, friends, coworkers. But so many times these types of disagreements come between Christians and those we go to church with.
This seems to be what Paul is describing in Philippians 4. It seems there was a disagreement and he was pleading with these two people that they “be of the same mind,” or resolve the conflict that was between them.
He doesn’t say what the conflict is, but something caused them to become upset at each other. I once heard a pastor jokingly say that this was because one of them prepared a dish for a meal that got placed closer to the head of the table. While it was a joking statement, it is a shame that it can be situations as simple as this which can come between Christians.
We are in this life together and we need the ability to interact to encourage and strengthen each other through our walk. When disagreements come between us, it disrupts our ability to help each other as God designed.
While we may only think that it disrupts our relationship with that one person, many times it affects us in other ways. So many times it can stand in the way of our church relationships, or even our relationship with God.
So rather than letting something come between us, we should commit that we want to resolve those things that might come between us. We can ask God to help us in navigating our thoughts and feelings so that we can continue to be a help to our fellow Christians around us. Doing so allows us to walk through this chaotic world together, helping each other as we focus on sharing the love of Christ and focusing on the prize that awaits!
