In this Q&A, Bill Johnson shares the importance of honoring those that you don’t agree with and how to pray for them with hope.
despite disagreeing with leaders how do
you pray for them from hope and see them
as God sees them I don’t know if they’re
talking about church leaders
governmental leaders I suppose that’s
just bills then yeah there’s there’s
similarity in both worlds yeah but in
church leaders you have occasion to get
to know someone where I don’t have the
occasion to know my president or my
governor yeah when you have occasion to
know someone my dad used to put it this
way says when you wash somebody’s feet
you find out why they walk why they walk
the way they do it’s a brilliant
statement that when you when you humble
yourself to serve somebody you discover
oh that’s that’s why that’s why they
walk this ways because they’ve got this
here and and there’s something about
just serving people you know honoring
them for who they are every person that
was made in God’s image so everyone
deserves honor in that level
everyone has giftings from God so
everyone deserves honor on that second
level some are walking in real Christ’s
likeness so there’s you know there’s
other levels and layers of honor but you
know at minimum we just recognize the
grace that’s on their life and you
internally celebrate it you can’t look
at you know I can’t look at a person
that I disagree with through the through
the lens of my opinion because then
they’re always going to be wrong and
I’ll always be right if I look at them
through the lens of this is how God made
them you know I may never agree with
that person that let me let me pick us a
sensitive one I don’t agree with the
person promoting abortion at all but
it’s important that I understand what
they value mm-hmm I may never agree with
them but they value the end of
individual rights of a woman well
there’s a cry there that needs to be
heard without the agreement to killing
the child yeah that makes sense that so
trying to protect something that’s
valuable to them yeah there yeah there
is something of value and I may never
agree with them but if I’m going to
value them as a person I have to take
the time to try to understand what makes
them tick what are they what are they
trying to protect what what is it
that is of value to them and it may be
180 degrees different in opinion
difference from the way I see with the
world yeah but but if I’m going to
communicate well to people or if I’m
going to befriend them at least I can
take the time to try to understand
mm-hmm you know so I think it’s I think
it’s important part of life if we’re
praying for leaders you know I’m going
to assume that because this is in a
church setting that they’re talking
about maybe spiritual leaders that that
are that they just don’t agree with yeah
everyone deserves honor and love and
prayer support you know just just don’t
pray for them through your need to be
right just just you know be a servant
yeah and pray I mean there’s a lot of
ways to pray without saying oh god show
them I’m right you know that that we’re
not supposed to pray that that’s
manipulation okay thank you yeah you
know just to be able to pray or just
really give them clarity their heart and
their mind for the task you’ve given
them to do give them favor all the way
around all around them so that they
always have the support and the the team
around them that they need to to fulfill
their purpose and there’s a lot of ways
like that to pray for people that
without throwing in little barbs you
know I hear some people they think I’m
praying for people they’re not they’re
praying against them yeah because they
thrown these little barbs you know that
spirit of deception that keeps them from
you know just getting stupid so little
backhanded yeah it doesn’t work you know
it doesn’t work God God God protects
those we accuse