🎥 Video 11C: PeaceSmart Organizations: Three Relationship Engines

Hi, I am Haley Steiner, a CLI presenter.

This course is taught by Professor Brian DeCook.

Conflict does not only happen at home.

It happens in churches, ministries, nonprofits, schools, businesses, teams, and community organizations.

People disagree about decisions.
Leaders feel pressure.
Volunteers feel unseen.
Staff members feel corrected unfairly.
Teams compete for resources.
Someone avoids responsibility.
Someone uses authority harshly.

Organizations can become places where the Wildfire spreads fast.

But they can also become places where the Peacefire shapes a healthier culture.

In this course, we name three relationship engines for PeaceSmart organizations.

The first is authority as the power to serve.

Jesus said in Mark 10 that rulers of the nations lord power over others, but it must not be that way among His disciples. Whoever wants to become great must become a servant.

Christian authority is not the right to control. It is the responsibility to serve God’s purposes and the good of others.

The second engine is correction as the power to grow.

Correction should not be humiliation. It should not be surprise attack. It should not be public shame. Correction, when done wisely, helps people mature, repair, learn, and become more fruitful.

Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens his friend’s countenance.”

The third engine is conflict as the power to transform.

Conflict can expose unclear expectations, hidden pride, unhealthy systems, poor communication, fear, favoritism, or mission drift. When brought into the Peacefire, conflict can become a place of repentance, clarity, courage, and renewal.

PeaceSmart organizations do not pretend everything is fine.

They create honest pathways for feedback.
They clarify roles.
They correct with dignity.
They protect people from intimidation.
They confess leadership failures.
They pursue reconciliation where possible.
They build firebreaks where needed.

James 3 says that the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceful, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits.

That is the kind of wisdom organizations need.

Before moving on, ask: In the groups I serve, is authority being used to control, or to serve? And how can I help the Peacefire shape the culture?

Last modified: Saturday, June 20, 2026, 5:49 AM