Every battle is won or lost before it is fought." This ancient wisdom from The Art of War by Sun Tzu has guided military strategy for centuries. Does the precept apply equally to peacemaking? Is peace won or lost before it is ever attempted? Ken Sande believes it is.

Sande is an attorney and the president and founder of Peacemaker Ministries. He has helped hundreds of churches and ministries around the world overcome disputes and complex conflict by using biblical peacemaking principles. He's convinced that seeking peace requires every church to be prepared for conflicts before they arise.

"Once we're in the conflict," says Sande, "it's very difficult to put in place the structures we need."

Leadership senior editor Skye Jethani spoke with Ken Sande in Cape Town, South Africa, while both were attending the Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization.

Do the conflicts you're hearing about in churches here in Africa differ from the conflicts you see in the U.S.?

Yes and no. I'm talking to people ...

o For information on resources has developed to prepare church leaders to deal with conflict biblically, go to . 1