My husband James recently had a frustrating experience trying to sign our son Owen up for youth soccer. 

He registered Owen online, completed paperwork to become an assistant coach, waited a couple of weeks, followed up by email, and… nothing. 

Eventually, he gave up and signed Owen up with a different organization, but then ran into issues processing the payment. After attempting to pay on multiple devices using different browsers, he eventually contacted the manager who took the payment manually.  

I can feel my blood starting to gently simmer as I think about it - and I’m guessing you have had many such similar experiences! 

Modern life is inherently full of friction. We face challenges and roadblocks both large and small that can lead to frustration with systems, situations, and people. 

Oftentimes, this frustration is valid, but it can lead to misplaced anger or mistreatment of others. Over time, especially in a family or a community, this can lead to conflict, dysfunction, and broken relationships.

I myself long for a life that is frictionless, in which everyone is helpful and competent, systems work perfectly, and I never feel frustrated. But, that is not reality. 

In fact, idolizing a life with no friction can lead us to have impossibly high standards that cause us to interact from a place of entitlement, irritability, or even rage.

In this week’s Gospel, we learn about Jesus’ way of conflict resolution when we find ourselves in muddy situations with imperfect people (ourselves included). He offers a road map for managing difficult interpersonal situations that is both practical and love-filled. 

I’ll be preaching this Sunday, and hope you’ll listen in!

Peace,

Amy Lajiness