Relationships

Just like money and time, relationships with others can often cause a wedge between you and God. I’m sure we’ve all had that one person we can’t stop thinking about. Just like a fish at the end of a fisherman’s line, our hearts are completely hooked, and we can’t seem to swim away. Whether it’s a friend, a family member, a potential partner, or even an enemy, our focus is drawn away from God.

So, here’s the question: Do you want your relationships to be truly life-giving, healthy, and wholesome? Do you want them to flourish the way God intended them to? We can be gripped by all manner of feelings, whether it’s lust, unforgiveness, or fear of loneliness; or happiness, a sense of belonging, and self-edification. These are opposing extremes yet equally as damaging if God and His Kingdom aren’t put first.

Remember how we’re learning that God wants the very best for us? He wants to bless us. That includes our relationships. But as soon as we let our earthly relationships become more important than Him, they stop being the best they can be. It seems odd, but to have the best relationships with others, we have to seek God and His Kingdom first. Why? Because true love comes from God, not ourselves. 1 John 4:19 says, “We love because He first loved us.” This means the reason we love Him and the reason we can love others is because He taught us what this love looks like. We must remain at the Source to keep drawing from His eternal well.

The point is this: the relationships you have will never flourish in the blessings of God if He isn’t at the center of them all.

Stewarding your relationships well means prioritizing Him and His Kingdom and letting His love be the love with which your relationships are based on. Lust is turned into respect for God’s creation. Unforgiveness is turned into healing and life. Loneliness is eradicated in the warmth of God’s unending adoption into His family. Happiness from others is turned into joy from God, which never lets us down. Uncertainty in belonging finds security in His unfailing friendship. Self-edification finds no reason to stick around because He edifies what He speaks over us.

Response:

1. Who has hooked your heart?
2. How will you put God first in your life and steward your relationships well?
3. What can you do to receive the love of God today and let that be the love you share with others?

Tomorrow we will spend our last day together looking at "Gifts".