Stupid Human Tricks – Manipulation

Greetings Dear Reader,

One of the great crimes that the church commits against its people and those outside the faith is that of trying to manipulate them into what is “right”.  One cannot manipulate someone and achieve lasting results.  As I think through this there is some reasoning through which I need to travel.

First I consider what it means if I seek to manipulate someone else.  If my faith is as strong as I feel it is then I do not need to “trick” someone else into following Christ.  I do not need to put pressure on them.  My faith should be able to stand on its own without me coercing anyone to do anything.  If it cannot then is it really worth having?

Another aspect of this is that manipulation always hurts both parties.  The damage is not always evident at first but the lasting impact is there.  It causes people to see Christ as the problem and has the opposite desired impact.

No matter what I think my motivation is for being manipulative it is wrong.  It is far better for me to motivate through love and honest following.  The impact of humility is much larger than of trying to bend others.  If I am to have a voice for Christ it must be one that can be trusted.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store."