Bridges and Ravines

A few weeks ago, a friend of mine attended a conference. Knowing that sometimes she can become overly passionate about some of the issues that were to be discussed, she developed a mantra for the weekend: "Be a bridge, not a ravine." At first the mantra was for her own use - to calm her nerves, to make her feel better about the situation in which she found herself. By the end of the weekend, however, many of us had started making light of her mantra. Now the importance of that mantra, that prayer, has taken a life of its own for me.

A colleague of mine, whom I only see once a year at a sales meeting, is the creator and author of the Wesley Blog. (Please note that the views of the Wesley Blog and this blog are solely the views of their owners and not those of our employer). While our theological concepts fall on opposite ends of the supposed spectrum, he and I were friends and collegues before we knew one another's theological beliefs. Our conversation this time, however, focused on blogging. I told him I knew about his blog because of an interview he did with Beth Stroud. This opened up discussion - dialogue - about being bridge builders. I could have easily ignored him all of sales meeting. I could have easily demonized him, like I admit I have done to others. I could have given him a piece of my mind and pretended I was being "prophetic." Instead, I did something that was more difficult - I met him where he was, I shared part of my story, I made a commitment to conversation, prayer, and mutual love, and we shared time together as conduits of God's grace. I was a bridge and not a ravine.