“(God) has restored our fellowship with him through Christ, and has given us this ministry of restoring relationship” (V18)
Relationships are always worth restoring. Because life is about learning how to love, God wants us to value relationships and make the effort to maintain them instead of discarding them whenever there is a rift, a hurt or a conflict.
How to Restore A Relationship As believers, God has “given us the ministry of reconciliation” (2Cor 5:18) 7 Bible steps to restoring (reconcile) fellowship.
- Talk to God before talking to the person. Discuss the problem with God. You will discover that either God changes your heart or the other person’s without your help. 2. Always take the initiative. It doesn’t matter whether you are the offender or the offended. God expects you to make the first move (Matt 5:23-24) 3. Sympathize with their feelings. Use your ears more than your mouth (Phil 2:4) Patience comes from wisdom, and wisdom comes from hearing the perspective of others. 4. Confess your part of the conflict. If you are serious about restoring a relationship, begin with admitting your own mistake (Matt 7:5) 5. Attach the problem not the person. “A gentle response diffuses anger” (Prov 15:1) 6. Co-operate as much as possible. Read Rom 12:10-18 You’re blessed when you show people how to co-operate (Matt 5:9) 7. Emphasize reconciliation, not resolution. It is unrealistic to expect everyone to agree about everything. Reconciliation focuses on the relationship, while resolution focuses on the problem. We can re-establish a relationship even when we are unable to resolve our differences (Rick Warren)
PRAYER LINE: Ponder on the above and ask for God’s grace to reconcile with others.
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When you know Jesus, you know who you are and where you’re going.