Let’s Plant Life Seeds!- Seed#2:RELATIONSHIPS

There are 5 things things in life that we know are important, but do not treat with much importance. You see, simply knowing is useless until what we know is applied and manifested in our behavior or actions.

Let me give you 2 simple facts:

1. OUR TIME ON EARTH IS LIMITED. The average life expectancy of a person is 78.8 years according to CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention)

2. WHAT YOU PLANT IN YOUR EARLY YEARS, YOU WILL REAP IN YOUR LATER YEARS.

Some people would see our life as a book, and we’re the authors.
For this time, I want us to picture our life as a garden and we’re the gardeners planting the seeds that we will reap later in our life.

Today, let’s talk about the second seed- RELATIONSHIPS.

“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.”- Ephesians 4:2 

 

There are 3 important relationships in our life: Our relationship with our Self. Our relationship with Others. And our relationship to God. IF we’re doing great on all these 3 relationships, I believe  100% that we can truly be happy.

• Relationship with your Self. 

According to Rick Warren, the author of Purpose Driven Life, there are 2 things that prevents us from reaching our highest potential. Number one is wishing that we are somebody else (perhaps the person that you admire or envy); and number two is people-pleasing (to the extent that we do things that we may not really like to do but do anyways in order to be accepted). Both of these are destructive because it prevents us from accepting our selves as we are!

When you look at the person in the mirror, who do you see?

Do you see the failure or the fighter that keeps going no matter how many times he fell?

Do you see the ugly because you do not fit to the norms of society or the unique person who is confident in his own kind of beautiful?

Do you see the prideful being who cannot let go of past hurts or the forgiving loving person who choose to believe that there is still goodness in others despite negative past experiences?

Be careful what you seed you are nourishing to your self. You become who you think you are. Make your “I AM” positive.

• Relationship with your Others. 

Do you want to know how you impact your family or friends? Why not try this simple test. Ask yourself: When you’re around them, do they become happier or gloomier or no change at all?

When I like a person, I light up when they’re around me. I feel much happier, I feel inspired, I feel like the best in me comes out.

When I don’t like a person, I don’t hang out with him for too long. Otherwise, I feel like all the positive energies in me are being sapped out and my monster tendency is slowly coming out!

Now there are also times when I’m around people who do not affect me much. They may be around or not and I won’t care- my world continues to revolve.

Obviously, we all want to have that positive impact to others. We all want to be desirable because we affect them in such a way that they become their best. Just like how it is stated in Proverbs 27:17, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”

But how are we as spouses, partners, parents, sons & daughters, and friends? Do we communicate in a positive tone? Do we deliberately set time to bond and enjoy each others’ company? Do we give enough encouragement and affirmation? Do we give more than we get? Do we seek more to listen and understand rather than set rules and so be it? Are we trusted and reliable friends or are we just friends when we can benefit from the friendship? Do you prioritize people or material things?

We all want to be successful, but it’s also important to consider who you will be celebrating your life’s successes with! Nourish your Relationship seeds. You will be grateful for it later in life.

• Relationship with God. 

I am in my mid-30’s and it is embarrassing for me to admit that I have not read the whole Bible. I know that having a deeper spiritual relationship with God is knowing Him more. And the only way for me to get to know Him is to read other people’s account of Him thru the Scriptures.

Like many others, I know about God, but I did not know Him. I’m still a baby in my walk as a Christian. But I’m trying to have this closer relationship with Him now. I still fail most of the time, God is very patient with me. I delight in knowing that He’s mg Father and He loves me and He’s always just a prayer away. (Isn’t it amazing how we can just talk to Him whenever we want, wherever we want?)

Because I know that God loves me, I can love myself and accept even my undesirable traits.
Because I know that God loves me at my darkest, it is easier for me to love, understand and forgive others.

Get to know God. I know you will like Him a lot! 🙂

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Did you missed the First Seed? Read it here.