Friendships

I want to share with you the daily devotional that I received today. I think we all want meaningful friendships/relationships in our lives. These steps are great to apply.

Connect by being candid
by Rick Warren

"An honest answer is the sign of a true friendship." Proverbs 24:26 (GNT)

The fourth key to connecting with people is this: Be candid about problems in the relationship.
Being candid and being connected go together. You don't have one without the other. Genuine, healthy, deep, meaningful relationships are built on honesty, not on flattery. Flattery is a sign of a manipulator, not a sign of somebody who is genuinely your friend.

All of us have blind spots. The question that really matters is, do you have anybody in your life who loves you enough to point them out? You cannot grow unless somebody points out the things that you can't see in your life, but that need changing. Let me give you three rules for being candid in relationships:

1. Compliment in public, correct in private. Do this with your children, your spouse, your employees, and your friends.

2. Correct when they're up and not down. When I'm feeling good, I can handle almost any correction. When I'm feeling tired, I can't handle anything. Timing is everything when you're being candid.

3. Never offer correction until you've proven that you are also willing to be corrected. Remember, seek to understand before seeking to be understood. You open up your life before you expecting someone else to be open with you.

Connecting means we care enough to be candid. Who do you need to get honest with? Is there an issue you need to be candid about? "An honest answer is the sign of a true friendship." (Proverbs 24:26 GNT)

The Will of God

I was listening to Dr. Charles Stanley talk about the Will of God. Here are the notes that I have been reflecting on:

God will break us down in the areas that we need to be freed from. However, we have a free will and if we aren't willing to let God do his work in us then sooner or later he will quit trying and God's will won't be fulfilled in our lives.

God has a Determined Will and a Desired Will. Determined Will are things that God will make happen no matter what. Desired Will is God's Will that he desires for us. In which, we have a free will to decide if we are willing to pursue it. Are you willing to pursue his will for your life?

You probably can order this DVD The Will of God on his website.

Bravery

As a woman Bravery is not something I tend to think a lot about. However, after my bible study the other night I feel like I received a huge wake-up call for the woman’s role. Proverbs 31:10 call us to have “noble character” which is translated in Greek to mean Brave. I have read this passage before and never saw it as bravery. I realized that I am not really a brave woman. I have a lot of fears. My biggest fear is that I will put my circumstances in front of trusting in God. Making excuses for not doing what he is asking me to do. Having faith requires being very brave. As I get older, fears somehow take more control of my life. I really miss that child-like optimist and zeal. Where does it go? Well the most common command in the bible is “Do Not Be Afraid” Why do you think the Lord reminds us of that so often? I believe because it is the thing we struggle with the most in our lives. Wouldn’t it be great to have one day go by with no fearful thoughts? What would you think about?