Proverbs 27:19 NLT - As a face is reflected in the water, so the heart reflects the real person.
These are the words I (Collin Austin) had pasted at the top of my show notes as I went into this podcast interview with Gainesville City Commissioner David Arreola. Why? I knew my heart to serve and contribute to Gainesville is in the right place and from what I had learned about David through others, his heart is too. I wanted this to be top of mind as I went through the interview.
Though I had met David briefly in the past, this was the first time I had ever sat down and had a conversation with him. I knew that my perspective on specific topics was different from David's. As you will hear, the conversation got a little passionate and heated in parts, but it was a healthy dialogue. I genuinely enjoyed the time we spent together on the show and we spent several more minutes talking after our recording. We found common ground, I have respect for David and I felt respected, too.
For me, this was a conversation I needed and will grow from. I'm not a confrontational person and typically avoid conflict at all costs, so it would have been easy for me to simply not invite David on the show and avoid sensitive topics altogether, but how does one grow by staying within their comfort zone? How do we grow if we don't listen to others' perspectives?
I wrote these words in my prayer journal a couple of nights following the recording... "We definitely got heated as we talked about the Covid vaccine mandates. I felt my heart pounding like it never had before while recording. I felt and recognized my body responding in this manner and I was able to pause and calm down as I prayed to you. I wanted so bad to not be of the flesh, but to be of the Spirit. I'll admit, it's way easier said than done."
I later wrote, "I bit my tongue and did so a few times in this interview. At other times I began to interrupt in emotion and caught myself. [Lord] Continue to work in me so that I may be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires (James 1:19)."
I love the unexpected challenges that podcasting brings. I love the people that I get to meet. I love serving our community. I love building relationships with people that think differently than I do. I love learning to be uncomfortable by challenging others' perspectives so maybe they'll grow, too. I love the challenge of finding common ground, even when I may disagree.
Cheers, David Arreola. Cheers, Gainesville. I look forward to more conversations like this one.
[This podcast was recorded on Tuesday, November 16th, 2021]
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City Commissioner David Arreola
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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/david.i.arreola/
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