Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

If you spend enough time fighting another man’s demons, they become your own.

Another way of looking at that is in service to others do not neglect your own needs.

Perhaps the better confession is that God doesn’t need my help. I need His.

God asks for our consideration and cooperation but not our help. That battle has already been won and I have not been careful enough in my service to remember that. I’ve been forgetful.

Will any of this help you? I don’t know and I really shouldn’t care if I trust God. My understanding is not going to change anything. God does.

Is God changing me? I hope so. Am I paying enough attention to what He is doing in me? Probably not.

I believe I trust God but do the words of my mouth and the actions of my hands reflect that? Are my feet planted in the Way? If I don’t look down now and then, should I be surprised to find out I’ve taken a misstep?

Attending to my own salvation is just as important as attending to that of others. I’ve been forgetful.

I thirst.

Psalm 19:12 Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults.

Years ago a sister in the Lord and I had a difference of opinion about the trials of another. She was very passion in her love for this man, she empathized with him over the agonizing decision that this man had made.

The specifics of the man’s decision are common today. They were not so common in those days. I will not go into specifics as that would be taking up an agenda, which is not mine to do. The issue at hand is two loving people that know the Lord and are passionate about coming to know His will in a matter.

We disagreed and neither of us were willing to relinquish our positions. The discussion came to an end when I said to her, “God doesn’t make mistakes.”

As she stomped of bitterly I bowed my head in prayer. “Lord if I be wrong in this matter, show me.”

Suddenly I felt her loving arms around my neck and tears running down her cheek. “I’m sorry.”

So often in these circumstances the temptation is to ask the Lord to “fix” those who oppose us. I am firmly convinced that we need to check ourselves before we even consider God’s intervention in relationship. This wasn’t about a third party sin, it was about maintaining the bond of peace between two people who love the Lord.

We were never going to resolve a third party issue between the two of us. It is pride that holds onto an opinion as if it is going to fix a problem. Opinions are just individual viewpoints into a situation outside of our control. Those things vary within fellowship based on personal experience which can be positive or negative.

When we allow opinions to break fellowship, we are both wrong.