In the book, A Model-Free Approach to the Study of Subjective Well Being, the authors identified the primary components of a happy life as being: 1) the number of friends, 2) the closeness of friends, 3) the closeness of family, and, 4) the relationships with one's co-workers and neighbors. In other words, relationships are the key to happiness.
We were made for relationships. Especially as Christians, we are encouraged to live in love and peace with our fellow believers.. King David wrote in Psalm 133:1: “How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony!” Jesus even goes so far as to say our love for one another is the identifying mark of our relationship with Him! He said in John 13:35: “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
John must have understood what Jesus was saying, because he would later write in his first epistle that if our horizontal relationships with one another are not in order, our vertical relationship with God cannot be in order. There is not question that God wants us to walk in fellowship with one another. A big part of the Christian life is expressed in how you relate to others. John Wesley once said, “The Bible knows nothing of solitary religion.” Wesley is saying that we were made for relationships.
Solomon talks about this as well in Ecclesiastes 4:9-10: “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble.
This week we are going to look at how we can go deeper in our relationships. Solomon said, “Someone who falls alone is in real trouble”, so we are going to look at four things you can do to ensure that you are developing proper relationships with others. And these four things apply to every relationship in our lives...our marriage, our family, our work, and neighbors.
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