Walking in Relationship

 

If we say we have fellowship with him and yet keep on walking in the darkness, we are lying and not practicing the truth.  1 John 1:6

Relationships are funny things. You can go through some pretty big stuff together and be ok, but then it’s the little things building up between you that can tear you apart. I’ve struggled over my life with friendships. I haven’t had many, just a few really deep ones. Oftentimes I will have a friend during a really rough season or a tragic occurrence in one or both of our lives and we will be so pivotal for each other in dealing with it. It seems to strengthen our bond and our friendship. But then, for some reason, things change. Little things here and there. It builds up I guess, and before I know it, the relationship changes. With one exception, I can’t tell you when each of my close friendships ended, and with that one, I couldn’t say I understood it in the moment or even saw it coming.

 I can tell you for certain that I have cared deeply for and about each of my close friends I’ve had over the years. I never stopped caring. It sure would be interesting to do an exit interview with them, to say, “Why did we stop being close?” With the consistency of it happening in my relationships, I’ve got to figure I’m the common denominator. It’s got to be something I’m doing wrong, or not doing right. It’s not for lack of trying, I can promise you that!

 No, I wasn’t inspired to write this post today because of a recent relationship change. It was as I considered today’s verse and my relationship with Jesus that these thoughts came to mind. I have certainly failed Him over the years, I have no doubt about that. And yet, He’s never left me, He never quit. Jesus and my husband, they are the two friend figures in my life that have remained constant, even when times got rocky. I’ve been blessed with other long-term relationships as well, primarily with my Mom and my kids but also with my cousin. I could say that it’s because they are family, but there are other family members that I have little or no contact with. So what’s different? Why can I maintain some long-term relationships and not others?

 Again, maybe it’s not me, it’s them. Perhaps these people in particular have something about them that causes them to stick with me, even when I’m difficult. Perhaps it all comes back to Jesus, Jesus loving me through them.

 Today’s verse says, “If we say we have fellowship with him and yet keep on walking in the darkness, we are lying and not practicing the truth.” 1 John 1:6. I wonder if this was the downfall of my other friendships. Perhaps I said we were friends, but I didn’t act like a good friend. I’m terrible at staying in touch. I try, Lord knows I try. I set reminders. I try to create rhythms and routines of connection. And yet I’ll open my texts and realize it’s been a week, or two weeks, or more since the last time we chatted. I know that the burden of communication isn’t fully on me, that it should be a shared commitment, but I also know that it can be wearing if you are the primary communicator in a relationship, if you are almost always the one who reaches out to say, “Let’s do something.” I try really hard to not put that burden on others, but I think that it happens anyways.

Here's the Thing: With Jesus, when we say we have fellowship with Him, when we say we love Him, it means that we will choose to obey Him. With people, when we say they are our friends, we need to respect them. Thankfully, Jesus is bigger than all of us, and when we mess up, He’s still right there ready to forgive us and give us a 1,438,598,787,293,874,038,974,573th chance!

Abiding in Jesus

  1. Week 1: Trusting the Gardener's Work
    1. John 15:1 - Seven Things Jesus Is
    2. John 15:2 - Pinch Those Suckers Out!
    3. Philippians 2:12-13 - Working Out My Salvation
    4. Matthew 5:16 - Stay Salty!
    5. 1 John 1:6 - Walking in Relationship
  2. Week 2: Bearing Lasting Fruit
    1. John 15:3-4
    2. John 15:5
    3. John 15:6
    4. Psalm 1:2-3
    5. Galatians 5:22
  3. Week 3: Abiding in Jesus Through His Word
    1. John 15:7-8
    2. John 8:31-32
    3. Psalm 119:9-11
    4. Psalm 119:15-16
    5. 2 Timothy 3:16-17
  4. Week 4: Abiding in Jesus Through Obedience
    1. John 15:9-10
    2. James 1:22
    3. 1 John 3:24
    4. Matthew 7:24-25
    5. John 14:23-24
  5. Week 5: Abiding in Jesus Through Love
    1. John 15:11-12
    2. John 15:13-14
    3. 1 John 4:10
    4. 1 John 4:11-12
    5. Romans 12:9-13
  6. Week 6: Chosen and Commissioned by Christ to Bear Fruit
    1. John 15:15
    2. John 15:16
    3. Ephesians 2:10
    4. Galatians 6:9
    5. John 15:17

Wrap-Up

Comments

  1. AnonymousJune 17, 2025 at 10:02 PM

    Let’s do something. sje

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJune 20, 2025 at 4:07 AM

    Let me hear from you 🙏🏼

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousJune 20, 2025 at 6:52 AM

      That would be easier to do if I knew who this was?

      Delete

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