There is a premise which lives on in many situations without being challenged – Life should always be harmonious, clean, and smooth. People, when things are going correctly, will work together with every outcome on time and budget. Competing priorities will resolve themselves, conflicting views will combine to something greater, and everyone will remain calm, industrious, and focused. I am not sure where this world exists, but it is not mine. My world is messy.
In a messy world, rules are confusing. Do I fight or concede? Do I engage and debate or do I retreat and remain quiet? How do I respond to the tyranny of two options?
Life like to remind me that there are always more than two options in every situation. If one can only see two, find the third. If one finds the third, there is a choice but there also could be more.
In a mess, everyone has a choice of how s/he is going to respond. My ideal response includes the words fairly and clean. Experience often reminds me how messy situations can lead to great outcomes. The fact that it is messy does not lead to a messy choice. How will I play? When things are chaotic and uncertain, I hear the call to be intentional, focused, and fair. Listen to contrarian voices, they may offer new insights. Consider competing views, great ideas can emerge where you least expect it. Engaging with honor and respect creates the potential for shared visions and collaboration.
Messy situations can be hard work. One needs to be prepared for getting dirty, fighting through the struggle, and enduring more pain than one every thought possible. Life is rarely a straight line, even when the mission is obvious.
As I look back, the stories of old remind me that my challenge is not new. Great battles, messy times, and uncertainty on what comes next have been with every generation. We live in a mess. Their prayer is my prayer today; “Blessed be God, my mountain, who trains me to fight fair and well.” (Psalm 144.1).
