We all have a number of different types of relationships in our lives. There are the relationships we have with our family, our friends, our partners, and our colleagues. All of our relationships can lead to growth, if we’re open and committed. Firstly, our relationships themselves can be grown when we put the effort in. We have to spend time with people for a relationship to develop. We need to really listen to what the other person has to say, and remember details about them. It’s through this time and conversation that we can begin to understand the other person better, allowing us to grow closer to them and know how to show them love. It can be easy to take people for granted. We need to learn how other people feel loved and appreciated, and then act in that way towards them. It’s also important to treat the other person with respect, in the way that we would want to be treated. The Bible says: ‘Do to others as you would have them do to you’ (Luke 6:31 NIV), which is a great rule for us to live by if we want our relationships to grow. The Bible also says: ‘Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.’ If we don’t exercise humility, patience, and love in our relationships, we’ll find that they begin to fall apart rather than grow. Finally, communication is necessary to maintain and grow any relationship. We need to remember that people can’t read our minds, so we’ll often have to tell them if we need something or if we’re upset by something. So if we want our relationships to last, we need to commit ourselves to growing them.
