The God who Sees

"You have seen it, O Lord. Do not keep quiet. O Lord, do not be far from me.” Psalm 35:22

Let’s be honest, most conflicts are hardly black and white. We humans are gloriously flawed and there is both freedom and responsibility in accepting this. Knowing we can be wrong, off base, way out in left field or not even in the ballpark actually frees us from having to prove how right we must be.

When we take our imperfections seriously, conflicts become less about winning an argument and more about problem-solving. Even the highest achievers will find themselves in a time when they no longer are on top. What once worked easily now seems to lack any firepower at all. If we have learned that we don’t have to be on top all the time, we are free to look for help and reach out to others who may see the situation from another vantage point.

But, that is how flawed people work out their differences perfectly. Unfortunately, flawed people usually bring their flaws to the whole process of conflict resolution. When one person holds the power or authority, unless they have learned to let go of having to be right, they will often use that power to bend the will or actions of the person they are in conflict with.

That leaves the one with less power feeling used, unsafe and helpless. Unless they have a way to deal with it, they may be reduced to a shame-based life, trying to please every person around them, and usually pleasing no one. Eventually, if the person with less power has been on the “losing side” too often, they will retreat, losing any passion or joy for life, let alone any enthusiasm for Christ Himself.

Assuming one has done all they can to resolve an issue and there is nothing else they can do, we can take David’s cry as our own: “You have seen it, O Lord.” There is One with greater authority who has seen the unfairness. Knowing that God is aware of unresolved pain helps us to move back into life and out of the pit of hopelessness. Nothing escapes God’s loving and righteous awareness.

We can cry out for God to speak up, we need to hear Him tell us that our life is not defined by the words and actions of who seem to have one rule for themselves and another for those who have no power. We want to hear Him say that He understands. What makes it so difficult in these situations is that the ones doing the harm often feel like they are in the right. They not only want to “win”, they believe they are acting righteously.

The hurt remains because the wounded person feels the offender has gotten away with cutting words and behavior. And, because the person has power or authority, their avenues for seeking recourse are limited at best. We in the church should be among the first to abhor the use of authority to get our way. We should be quick to stand up for those who may not be innocent, but certainly do not deserve mistreatment.

But, apart from the hope of reconciliation, we can take the wounds to God. When we ask Him to “be not far from me”, we can be sure He is already closer than we can imagine. For every unspoken word for fear of retribution, He will hear with perfect love and perfect righteousness. We do not need to measure our words when coming to our Heavenly Father. We can ask Him to see; ask Him to speak and know He is there, not to judge, but to bring comfort and healing.

And, if we need to be corrected of our own faults, we are ready to hear because He speaks to us from a place of reconciliation and not reprisal. The wounds which once hounded us and kept us from fulfilling the joy-filled life God offers can be healed in the presence of the God who Sees us truly as we are.