Conflict: God's Ideal Plan

I spent last night at a book tour event... not the typical activity done on a Friday night by a 22 year old in Nashville... but I wasn't the only one. More on that later.

It was called "An Evening with Donald Miller"- author of Blue Like Jazz. This tour was covering his newest release A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. I haven't read the book (just started BLJ for that matter) but I knew it would be quite the experience. I wanted to share some of the thoughts he presented as best I can remember, along with my own additions and thoughts. If you read anything groundbreaking, I doubt it is from my own mind. Possibly just in my own words.
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Think of a good story... whether it be a book or a movie. Anything that makes headlines (whether its your favorite genre or not) has a few things in common. Of course they have a protagonist, antagonist, supporting cast, etc. But all good stories share something else- conflict. In movies, the most critical point of conflict is the "Act 3 Climax"- when all things build to a certain point, and push the protagonist to the edge (and you to the edge of your seat) and all things finally come together (the couple falls back in love, the army wins the war, the kidnapped child is found). War movies, romantic comedies and even cartoons have this included. A good storyline is not without conflict. The conflict makes the story great. And we wouldn't have it any other way, would we? We see ourselves in movies, relate to the characters, and connect emotionally with them (whether it be an "I wish", an "awww" moment, or an inspirational "fight for what you believe in"). But without the conflict it's just... meaningless.

Its the same in our own lives. Conflict is the only way a character in a story can change. Don't we want to change? Don't we want our story to be great? Why, then, do we avoid conflict with all our might? Why do we cling to the "woe is me" attitude the second our boat gets rocked? Conflict is painful, yes, but it is the very thing that adds beauty and inspiration to our story for those that are watching. It is the way we change.

For some reason, the church (and our entire culture for that matter) has taught us to avoid conflict, and that if faced with it, we must be doing something wrong. Where did this idea come from? Who in the world came up with the idea that Jesus would rid our lives of conflict? For some strange reason, we have been taught to believe that accepting Jesus is our Act 3 Climax. That it is the most pivotal turn in our lives, and that we forever will be comfortable because of it. The truth, however, is much different.

Look through the Bible. The most dominant command is "Do not fear." Conflict is evident. Think of what accepting Jesus did to certain people's lives: How about Paul? Before Jesus, Paul, originally known as Saul, was an extremely powerful man, killing any who disagreed with his choices. Life was pretty good- I doubt he had much conflict, minus the type he caused for others. Enter: Jesus. Now, if it were like in the movies (and like too many church tell us), this would be the Act 3 Climax. Everything from here on out would be perfect. The credits would roll, and all watching would applaud. But, something different happened. He was blinded, imprisoned, and killed. And that's just the Reader's Digest Version of what happened. Serious, serious pain and suffering. So much for an Act 3 Climax. So much for life smoothing out.

So the question, then, is what do we do with this conflict? Without it, our human experience suffers. Especially relationally. How are we supposed to teach other if we have nothing teaching us? How are we to grow together if we are not growing ourselves?

Paul called himself a blessed man- blessed to be persecuted, tortured, imprisoned. Today's definition of blessed? Two incomes, 2.5 children, a brand new car and a smiley, accepting church family. This type of "blessed" robs your life of meaning and the ability to play a role in the beautiful story that God intended you to be a part of. Yes, I said it- God intended you to encounter conflict. He wants you to. To tell His story by embracing yours. How well are you telling your story? And how are you making it great?

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What a way to spend a Friday night, huh? Thankfully, I wasn't surrounded by the stereotypical bookclub crowd (I honestly don't know what that would look like, because I definitely am not part of that stereotype...). I was surprisingly surrounded by every stereotype, people of every shape and size. :Sigh: Ohh, the body of Christ.


-C