Ladies ~ 25.) Building, improving, and maintaining relationships and effective communication. Have you been hurt by people so much that you find isolation and exclusion comfortable alternatives? I dare say that we have all been hurt by mean-spirited people, we have all been hurt by faulty relationships, and most likely we’ve all had people that we love fail us …. and we have failed them. Sadly drama and head games abound … we live in a world full of hurting and sinful people and we ARE ourselves sinful and hurting people. No matter how intriguing isolation may feel it is not a good alternative for anyone … tempting? Yes, but not a good option nonetheless. When a person sets herself apart from others in a quest to be self-ruled and independent from relationships, accountability, counsel, advice, drama, other’s influence, responsibility, and answer-ability it is not good. “Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment” (Prov. 18:1). This scripture is not suggesting that we need to submit our lives to every single person that wants to influence us. In many occasions this would be foolish. However it is true that it is wise to receive good godly counsel throughout our lives and to build good strong relationships. God has answers how to deal with sin and sinners ... it is ALWAYS best to be ruled by Him and to submit our relationships to His leading. Do you trust God with your salvation and not with your relationships and reputation? Christians, in particular, have a calling to minister our gifts to the edification of the body of Christ’s church. He did not empower us with Spiritual gifts so that we can go off and isolate ourselves from those who need us … and those that we also need in our lives. Lots of times we get hurt by faulty relationships and after awhile it can tempt us to put up walls and protective barriers to keep people, along with the unwanted drama that they bring with them, out of our lives. We get hurt … so we decide to put a hedge around our hearts so as to keep people from doing the same again. But this is not God’s plan or design for us. It is not good that we become Islands. If we isolate ourselves this only leaves us with one person to consult in our decisions in life… self. That may sound appealing but it shouldn’t. Proverbs is replete with verses that teach the importance of wise and hearty counsel/advice. Proverbs 18:1 warns that when we isolate ourselves that we cut ourselves off from all sound judgment. Our own view of ourselves is biased so it stands to reason that if we only advise ourselves we will be guilty of what made so many others fall having done what was right in ‘their own’ eyes. Deception, delusional living, selfish ambition, and beguilement are just some of the likely results of ostracizing ourselves from sound judgment. The truth is that we need godly people and they need us to be godly too. We need to go out into the world and our churches and be an example of godly friendship. The whole wide world is watching God’s people … do they see a difference in how we walk in the area of relationships? Do they see us trusting God’s design for relationships? Do they see a Christ like difference in us? Homework ~ Yield yourself to the Spirit and let Him use you each day in any person’s life that He wants to. Pray specifically about these things in your own life each day before you start the day … and at intervals between. Seek out truly godly friends … (remember godly friends are not perfect - but they strive to live for the Lord).
Posted on: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 10:13:48 +0000
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