I knew a man who...
Illustration
I knew a man who was having a serious relationship problem. He would withdraw into a turtle-like shell during arguments, much to the frustration of his spouse.
His earliest childhood memory was playing with a toy. His brother came along and wanted to play with the toy and they fought over it. Because of the argument, the father came to see what the matter was, took the toy from both of them, and threw it against the wall, smashing it.
It was no wonder this man was having relationship problems. His earliest, and primary, image of family life was that of conflict and violence. Avoidance was his way of coping.
What do we do when our lives are seemingly programmed by the unfortunate experiences of our past? Does what happened in our past simply make inevitable what our future will look like? The answer from the scripture story is "No."
His earliest childhood memory was playing with a toy. His brother came along and wanted to play with the toy and they fought over it. Because of the argument, the father came to see what the matter was, took the toy from both of them, and threw it against the wall, smashing it.
It was no wonder this man was having relationship problems. His earliest, and primary, image of family life was that of conflict and violence. Avoidance was his way of coping.
What do we do when our lives are seemingly programmed by the unfortunate experiences of our past? Does what happened in our past simply make inevitable what our future will look like? The answer from the scripture story is "No."
