Power for Relationships:
Bear With… – Part 1

Scripture Reading:  Colossians 3:15-17

Key Verse: Colossians 3:13

Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

This second section of making relationships work is about endurance.  That may not sound very romantic or appealing, but it is a reality in all healthy relationships.  We are all frail human beings with many odd and frustrating ways about us.  Thus, we get into relationships with frail human beings with their own odd and frustrating ways!  There are no exceptions to this truth!  No matter how blindly happy a couple is at first, after a few years together they discover each other’s true ways.

            Our printed key verse for today gives us the key word to successfully navigate another person’s odd and frustrating ways: “Bear with.”  In the Greek language the word is “anechomai” and basically means to “hold up, sustain, to endure.”  If you were standing beside an elderly person who was very frail, you would be willing to help hold them up – right?  In a relationship, you are standing by such a person, only they are frail on the inside which you can’t see as clearly.  The person you are in relationship with needs you to hold them up when their frailty shows up!  If you refuse, the relationship cannot last!

            We must ask God to open our eyes to other people’s frailty or brokenness.  He can fill us with compassion rather than impatience!  We can bear with them when they are falling short of our expectations!  (Continued)

Father, fill me with your love and compassion for the people that are around me.  Help me to hold them up when they are falling!  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.