Relationships: The Way We Connect with, God, Others, and Ourselves
Some of the greatest blessings or setbacks we have in life are directly related to relationships. I am passionate about the idea of doing relationships God’s way. When we consult with His Word, and build those connections on the foundation of honor and integrity, we have the opportunity to experience God’s best for our lives.
THE LOVE MODEL
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:37-40
Starting Over...
Getting Back To Yourself
I am fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14 excerpt)
Starting Over
Sometimes a fresh start happens because of a major catastrophe or a big blessing occurs in your life. Things like the death of a loved one, a job loss or even the birth of a new baby have a way of pronouncing the end of one chapter in our lives and the result is we have to start a new one. We don’t get to choose, but we have to respond.
However, sometimes a fresh start happens because you figure out where you are at a certain time or space is not working. That fresh start is just a choice. It’s like getting right in the middle of a paper you have been writing and deciding you don’t like how it is turning out. Rather than keep erasing and using white-out, you decide to rip that paper up and start over.
First. Only. Different.
I didn’t coin that phrase, but I like it.
I like it because it speaks of real authenticity.
First, only, different ME!
The ME God had in mind.
The ME that can’t be replicated or duplicated.
The ME that honors the blue print God has for my life.
The ME that loves ME!
There have been times that I needed a fresh start just to get back to ME!
I had to refocus and get my relationship with myself in order. I know that I am not alone in this truth that life, relationships, or even self-neglect can take you outside of who you are. I found myself there some years ago. I realized how much of who I was had been lost. I became toxic in my relationships. FULLY CHRISTIAN, AND A TOTAL MESS. I gave up a lot of myself looking for acceptance. I put on weight. Physical weight and emotional weight. I became a carrier of shame.
That is never God’s best and He won’t let you stay comfortable there. Conviction is one of the most wonderful parts of an active relationship with God. That conviction began to push me towards taking responsibility for my life.
Getting back to myself required a very conscious decision to rip up that page and start a whole new story line. God helped me to begin to collect the scattered pieces of myself. That decision did some amazing things inside of me. My creativity came alive. Hope, like a buried prisoner deep in my soul starting climbing its way out. God began to remind me that I was fearfully and wonderfully made and that He had a great plan for my life.
Maybe you need a fresh start.
A new method.
A divine do-over.
Perhaps it is time to stop waiting for anyone else to decide how you get to live and exist in the world. God is the author of our lives. His plan is so much greater than the limits that we ourselves or others impose. I think one of the things I know that we as Christians do sometimes is use our faith to ignore the murmurs of our hearts. We can feel unrest about something, and instead of taking any action we just wait for things to fix themselves. I am not minimizing the power of faith, however faith without works is dead.
If something we are doing is not working then we must partner with God to make adjustments to get that area of ourselves or our life back in line.
Take Action
It is my prayer for you that if you identify with these words, that as God leads you to initiate change that you would partner with Him. Boldly go after what you desire for your life. Anything that has taken you away from your joy, peace or God given purpose is also something that will also take you away from your authentic self. Your relationships with others will only be as healthy as the one you have with yourself.
It is never too late for a fresh start and to get back to yourself.