by Ben Mandrell, President and CEO of Lifeway
Nobody likes the ends of the bread loaf. I have four kids who can make a sport out of arguing, but the bread heels have never been among the things they have fought over. In the more than ten years I’ve been their dad, never once have I heard one of my children scream: “No, I want the crusty, super stale, little cardboard-like pieces!” Never. Kids want the fresh stuff. And so do adults.
Relationships are a little like those heels of bread. Over time, they tend to harden and become stale. Fortunately, the Bible gives us a surefire method to keep our connections with others from going stale. If you’re a follower of Jesus, you have the power within you to produce incredible freshness in the lives of others. This method for growing phenomenal relationships is foolproof, but it’s not free. This deep connection is love.
In John 15:11–14, Jesus breaks down the essence of love:
“I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. This is my command: Love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.”
Are you disappointed in the way your relationships are turning out? Do you long to go deeper with those around you?
I want to invite you to study God’s Word with us this spring. It’s my honor to have written Bible Studies for Life’s spring study on dealing with messy relationships. Together, we will unpack:
- Why relationships are vital to our spiritual development
- How the Bible helps us restore broken relationships
- How restoration in relationships points us back to Jesus Christ
It is in the context of relationships that we most visibly work out our faith. I’m excited that we get to do this together.
Download the First Session Obligation-Free
If this sounds exactly like the study your small group or Sunday School class needs, then you can get your copies here. Or, I invite you to download the first session to get a feel for what’s in store. Just fill out the form below to download it.
Sounds perfect study for my walk with Christ I have many stale relationships that ended badly and would like to know why and how and sometimes I would like them back but I don’t know how to biblically handle that because I want to walk the straight and narrow with Christs words and not my flesh feelings….