2 more Building Blocks (On Healthy Relationships pt. 3)

I hope you aren't getting sick of this series yet... about half way though. :) Today I am going to share the final 2 Building Blocks for True Friendship. The other 2 can be found here.

1. Selflessness

2. Truthfulness and Transparency

3. Forgiveness

4.  Time and Attention

3. Forgiveness

I am not going to spend a whole lot of time on this one because I am planning on doing a future blog series specifically about forgiveness, but here is the bottom line when building true friendships.

In every relationship, no matter what level, you will have MANY opportunities to forgive. I believe bitterness is the number 1 destroyer. Forgiveness is the means to healing and strengthening relationships. Just as we all need forgiveness extended to us, we need to be quick to extend it to others. (I don't know about you, but I haven't reached perfection yet to not need forgiveness.) This has to do with the little things in life, as well as the BIG.

Colossians 3:13 says "bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you".

As author, Neil T. Anderson, says "Don't wait to forgive until you feel like forgiving, you will never get there. Feelings take time to heal after the choice to forgive is made." 

4. Time and Attention

Invest in the relationships God has given you. Relationships will deteriorate when neglected. 

1 John 3:18 says "Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth." We have to be active in our friendships. It's so easy to say "lets hang out, or I'll call you soon" but do you follow through? Do you take the time to build with someone? Anything worth building takes time to build! Think of any worthy building, like the Taj Mahal...if I'm right, it took 17 years to build! I'm sure it took patience, vision and a lot of attention to get such a beautiful building, and so should our relationships, right?  Don't take the easy way out in friendships, it's so easy to just stay in tonight, or go shopping by myself...but take someone with you, make the effort to be with people- it will be worth it! Just making a quick phone call can make all the difference. 

Stay tuned.... the Enemies of Friendship are next...