Marriages, friends, family...they all have them. Work contains LOTS of relationship banks. You even have a relationship bank with faceless entities like governments and banks. What is a relationship bank? It is the level to which you are able to influence others based on their past performance in your world, and vice versa.
My wife and I don't speak of it much, but it is there. We try to keep our balances with each others as healthy as they can be. However, she is better at it than I am. She is a very hard worker and can usually perform much better than myself. So routinely I try and put out extra effort to keep things where they should be.
How are your relationships? Are there people constantly running in the red? Are there ex-boyfriends, husbands, or wives who have literally defaulted on every relationship loan you've extended? Do YOU have a tendency to overextend your relationship positions with others? Why do you think you do that?
I have a friend who loves to take advantage of me. Every time we get together, he figures out a way to get some value out of my time with him. I either run an errand for him, or provide some professional advice, or deal with some work that he would otherwise have to do. I put up with it for years, but recently I decided to close his account. I was tired of the one-sided nature of his friendship.
You've got a relationship bank with God, if you hadn't already noticed. He provides or withdraws blessings and power based on how you treat your connection with Him. I'll be the first to say that I do not get to services every single week. But you know what? I spend LOTS of time outside of church working on His projects and needs. I have put limitless effort into forwarding His Kingdom. So what follows? Benefits that you would not believe, like a loving family, a typically fun career, and friends that willingly bless me with their time and love.
Take an audit of your relationships. Rein in the folks who have taken way too much and not provided equal benefit. Let your guidance from Christ show you why some folks simply do not deserve your time or effort. Jesus is so good at providing help with this kind of stuff. In a lot of ways, He is the benchmark for this kind of thing. He handled his relationship bank PERFECTLY...so when you need to measure how to handle your own, you can just look at His life and works.
My wife and I don't speak of it much, but it is there. We try to keep our balances with each others as healthy as they can be. However, she is better at it than I am. She is a very hard worker and can usually perform much better than myself. So routinely I try and put out extra effort to keep things where they should be.
How are your relationships? Are there people constantly running in the red? Are there ex-boyfriends, husbands, or wives who have literally defaulted on every relationship loan you've extended? Do YOU have a tendency to overextend your relationship positions with others? Why do you think you do that?
I have a friend who loves to take advantage of me. Every time we get together, he figures out a way to get some value out of my time with him. I either run an errand for him, or provide some professional advice, or deal with some work that he would otherwise have to do. I put up with it for years, but recently I decided to close his account. I was tired of the one-sided nature of his friendship.
You've got a relationship bank with God, if you hadn't already noticed. He provides or withdraws blessings and power based on how you treat your connection with Him. I'll be the first to say that I do not get to services every single week. But you know what? I spend LOTS of time outside of church working on His projects and needs. I have put limitless effort into forwarding His Kingdom. So what follows? Benefits that you would not believe, like a loving family, a typically fun career, and friends that willingly bless me with their time and love.
Take an audit of your relationships. Rein in the folks who have taken way too much and not provided equal benefit. Let your guidance from Christ show you why some folks simply do not deserve your time or effort. Jesus is so good at providing help with this kind of stuff. In a lot of ways, He is the benchmark for this kind of thing. He handled his relationship bank PERFECTLY...so when you need to measure how to handle your own, you can just look at His life and works.