Relationships

I was watching a video by Tyrese Gibson not too long ago where he was talking about the frustration men face when approaching women who automatically decide that they don’t want to be bothered without getting to know the man first. He likened it to women treating men like pests who need to be sprayed with bug spray. I never …

Expectations (can) kill relationships. And I’m not just talking dating relationships. I’m talking about friendships and relationships with family members. Sadly, I’ve seen its effects in my own life. My childhood was spent in a toxic household that bled of unfulfilled expectations. My biological mother had expectations that my stepdad wouldn’t spend all of their money on booze every night. …

Have you ever written a letter to someone you have never met? When I was a little girl we used to call them pen pals. Every year our teacher would bring in a list of children from another school, sometimes even from another country. We would get to choose a person from the list to begin writing to. One year …

We’ve previously looked at how relationships are more fulfilling when they involve interdependent compatibility of heart, mind, soul and body. Now let’s now pull it all together to solve the mystery of relationships. First Clue — Men as Husbands We find our first clue in Ephesians 5:25. A husband should love his wife the same way Christ loved the Church …

I had gotten used to living in the pit. Not only was I used to living there, but I started decorating. I painted the walls. I hung pictures. I made the pit a comfortable place to live. Feeling the trap of not knowing what else to do, she allowed herself to stay in the trenches of an unhealthy relationship. We exchanged …

Love doesn’t come in a heart-shaped box. There is no such person as Prince Charming. A spouse cannot give you “happily ever after.” There. I said it. It’s not pretty, but it’s true. In the second grade I learned that if someone loved you very much there would be a pretty heart-shaped box of candy on your desk on Valentine’s …

We’ve seen how our spirits, minds, and souls affect our relationships. Now let’s get physical and discover how God intends for our bodies to interact in relationships. Your body is the temporary physical address where your spirit, mind, and soul reside. You use your body in your worship of God, your service to God, and your physical interaction with other …

“He married someone else!” she yelped in between sobs. “And I gave him everything. I gave him everything, and he still married someone else!” I didn’t know what to say to this young woman who had confided in me, so I just put my arms around her and let her cry for a few moments. I couldn’t imagine what it …

Let’s have some fun with a frightening phrase that instantly renders us speechless: The Friend Zone! Ugghh! Your heart just skipped a beat, didn’t it? Realizing some of you think this topic is about as much fun as a root canal or a tax audit, we’ll keep this lighthearted so we’re super-sensitive on such a delicate subject. Few words cause more …

A few years ago, I packed my bags, and they landed a couple states away from my origin. Through an intense rainstorm, stretches of desert, and the unknowns of where we would sleep, I had my sister by my side. In time, however, the most natural thing happened. My sister went back home, and I was on my own for …