Articles
Proverbs To Live By (20:3)
It is honorable for a man to stop striving, since any fool can start a quarrel.
An angry word, a biting criticism, an unfair charge, an opinion on a hot-button issue and the war is on. Truly, “any fool can start a quarrel,” for it isn’t hard to do. And when confrontation escalates, emotions are aroused, reason goes out the window and all that matters is winning the argument.
This is why arbitrators are brought in to help settle disputes by finding common ground. The participants are far too entrenched in their own turf to see objectively anymore.
So it takes a special person to “stop striving,” to back away from emotion and ego and realize that a disagreement has become too volatile to settle. Such a person must keep the bigger picture in mind: “This issue isn’t worth the loss of a friend or the perpetuating of ugly words that may permanently damage a relationship.”
Do we want to be right? Or do we want peace and goodwill? Can we subordinate our own views for the greater good? As Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.”
