Confrontation

Some people hate confrontation and others seem to thrive on it. I would probably fit in the former “camp”, but I have learned that is necessary in most any level of leadership. Confrontation is a relative of accountability. If someone desires to be held accountable to me for something, at some point, I will need to confront them regarding their choices. Others seem to thrive on confrontation. They are the drama seekers. They love to stir things up a bit. They toss “verbal grenades” in a crowd just to see what happens. I do believe that confrontation is not all bad. It is often very clarifying on many levels.

Joshua is relatively new as the leader of God’s people. They are headed to Jericho for a big showdown with that city, when Joshua is confronted along the way. Check this out….

¹³ Joshua was near Jericho when he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and asked, “Are you a friend or an enemy?”

¹⁴ The man answered, “I am neither. I have come as the commander of the Lord’s army.”

Then Joshua bowed facedown on the ground and asked, “Does my master have a command for me, his servant?”

¹⁵ The commander of the Lord’s army answered, “Take off your sandals, because the place where you are standing is holy.” So Joshua did. (Joshua 5:13-15 NLT)

I’m not sure what the point of this exercise unless the Lord was testing Joshua’s dependence upon Him.  This taking of the promised land was God’s plan and the Lord’s army was doing the work through Joshua and the people of Israel. If I’m confronted by the commander of the Lord’s army, I hope that I’m obedient and humble like Joshua.

Confrontation calls for proper posturing. If I’m out of line and confronted, I need to humbly apologize. If I’m called out for doing something I’m supposed to be doing, I need to humbly push back. If I take every confrontation personally, I’m revealing that I’m insecure.  I have to be careful how I interpret confrontation. I believe it can really help me grow. There are times I have to look past HOW the confrontation took place and try to see the TRUTH of the confrontation. I often have room to grow, because I want to grow and expand my understanding of others. I want the Lord to confront me daily on my choices. I’m not saying that I want the commander of the Lord’s army to do that, but I do want and accept His accountability.

Pressing On!

Dwayne