A bright yellow pig can cause a lot of dissension, especially when it’s in your house.
After my husband and I married, I decorated our bedroom in shades of blue. I placed a bouquet of baby’s breath and azure blue silk flowers on the dresser. Then, I set blue-hued vases on either side of the bouquet. It was an eye-pleasing arrangement—until the yellow ceramic pig claimed squatter’s rights next to one of the vases.
My husband brought the yellow pig when we married. It was the type of piggy bank someone might win at a carnival—bright yellow and cheaply made. It definitely was not what I considered a pleasing accent to my flower arrangement.
I sneaked the pig out of sight, but my husband soon returned it to the original site. We continued to move the pig until I realized the futility of it. Now, the pig sits undisturbed in his corner.
Often, we must be willing to compromise, to separate the important from the trivial. It is senseless to allow unimportant things to create snags in communication. We must consider the desires of others and sometimes place them before our own.
Many churches have split because members on both sides were unwilling to communicate and consider the other side’s viewpoint. Many marriages have ended because the husband or wife refused to compromise. And many families are ripped apart because parents thought only of themselves.
The results may have been different for the churches and marriages if those involved had tried to live in peace, even if they had to run after it to catch and hold it.
When I did my share of running after peace, the clashing of a bright yellow pig and blue vases became less important than peace in my marriage.
Allow God’s peace to enter any problematic relationships you are in.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay and StillWorksimagery.)
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Norma C. Mezoe strives to be a Barnabas in her writing and in her living. Norma has been a published writer for thirty years and has written for magazines, devotionals, and S.S. literature. She is active in her small church as clerk, teacher, and bulletin maker. Norma may be contacted at normacm@tds.net.