"Meditation – 60 Days of Prayer" from The Upper Room in Nashville, Tennessee, United States for Monday, 22 August 2016 "Introductory Thought"

"Meditation – 60 Days of Prayer" from The Upper Room in Nashville, Tennessee, United States for Monday, 22 August 2016 "Introductory Thought"

The best place to start any difficult conversation is by focusing on the one thing we can control – ourselves.
One way to focus on our response before and during a courageous conversation is to be clear what we are hoping to achieve by the conversation. Are we aiming to clarify our parenting styles? to win the debate? to be right? to learn more about another person’s perspective and/or a particular topic? Often, we find that we have a mix of motivations. Clarifying the goal helps us stay on track and gives us more control over our emotions.
To focus the goal for a particular conversation, the authors of Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High suggest three helpful questions: (1) “What do I really want for myself? (2) What do I really want for others? (3) What do I really want for the relationship?”*
We could add one more: “As best as I can discern it, what does God want in this situation?”
Read and meditate on 2 Timothy 2:24-25[2 Timothy 2:24 and a slave of the Lord shouldn’t fight. On the contrary, he should be kind to everyone, a good teacher, and not resentful when mistreated. 25 Also he should be gentle as he corrects his opponents. For God may perhaps grant them the opportunity to turn from their sins, acquire full knowledge of the truth,]
For more practical tools such as How to Have a Courageous Conversation with Your Spouse click here:http://www.umcdiscipleship.org/topics/tools-for-leaders
*Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillian, Al Swizzler, Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High (New York: McGraw Hill, 2002), 34.
A note from The Upper Room: Starting September 11, Dr. Elaine Heath, dean of Duke Divinity School, will be lead our prayer community into a new conversation about God. As a part of UMC Prayer Community, please get a copy of Elaine’s new book, God Unbound, and use it with your leadership team, small group orSunday school class, or as personal study. For eight weeks, we will send regular emails for reflection and guidance, including a brief weekly video featuring Elaine’s insights on each chapter theme. Encourage others to join us by signing up atwww.60daysofprayer.org.
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