Growth, be it spiritual, mental or physical, comes in layers. According to Fr Richard Rohr, we have to “unknow” a bit every time we want to know in a new way.
My goal, to live the St Francis prayer, i.e., grant that I may seek to give comfort, understanding, love rather than seek to get them, must be tempered. There will ever be those who cannot or who purely do not wish to hear us.
Here's our new growth...learning, being willing to learn, how to let them resist us without resisting. Without resisting by projecting false superiority or without currying false favor. Both of which are self-protection on parade.
How to let them resist without resisting could not be simpler...which probably is why it takes so long to accept: Let them and move on. Let them resist the not-present us.
Our how-to is set out in Matthew 10:14, When you come to a town where the people cannot hear your words, shake the dust off your feet and move on.
My simplified version of that: When someone disagreeably disagrees with me, lean on my golden rule to try not to be as nasty as I want to be; say, with a smile, You may be right; move on.
The trick is remembering my golden rule...the rest then follows fairly easily.
Thank you.
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