Skip to main content

Relationships

Kyrie and Chris

 Relationships can be difficult for caregivers to navigate. Sometimes, there just isn't time for social interaction. Other times it is due to how we are perceived. Planning social activities can be quite a chore too. And no matter how well you plan, there can be one of those "somethings" that comes up last minute, causing others to perceive us as unreliable or inconsistent. It's okay that they don't get us, though. They don't have to. But for me, sometimes, it's super frustrating to try to make plans with so many possible "unknowns" in the air. Maybe as a culture, we miss the goal of relationships.

A relationship always has a start date. I became friends with my BFF when I was 8. There is a day I met her and we've been friends now for over 50 years. (Man, that makes me sound old... but she's older than me so there's that... lol) We didn't set an "end date" for our relationship, because it's an ongoing occurrence. We have walked with each other through all the crazy twists and turns life can throw at us. 

While making new relationships is different as a caregiver, and really different for the whole world right now because of Covid, the process is still the same. We just sort of grow into it. There are those people who you just connect with and become fast friends with, like my friend Mary. The day we met it was an instant connection, and we've just grown since then.

What in the world is my point?

Knowing God is about relationship, note rote. It's about walking through time together and learning more about each other all along the way. Of course, God has the advantage there since He already knows! lol. But there's not an endpoint we are trying to reach. The goal is a continued relationship - even after time. Our goal is to just keep walking with Him, talking with Him, fellowshipping with Him, until the end of time - then we will just do it forever. On our end, it means we just keep learning more about Him. On His end - it means He is always there with us and for us, like parallel lines with no end. (Former math teacher here.)

Today, I will welcome Him into my day as I would a friend. I'll purposefully look for Him in each situation - because He's there. I'll thank Him for desiring a perpetual relationship with us and for never abandoning us when life gets tough or complicated. Throughout the day, I'll stop and acknowledge His presence and thank Him for being right here - wherever "here" is. And I will trust Him to be with me, strengthen me, and even carry me as needed today. Will you join me?


Today's FBLive on relationships:




____________________________________________________________________
I Will declarations book cover


Check out my ebook store where you'll find these "I Will" Declarations from Psalms for just a buck! Download it today! I also have devotionals, study guides, poetry books, and free stuff! My Amazon bookshelf has some of these books on Kindle and for print - check them out!




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Ups and Downs

  Maybe it's just "that time of year" for me, but I've struggled a lot the last few weeks. I still affectionately  call it the caregiver's fog. Lol. Okay, maybe it's not-so-affectionately. I know I can share my true feelings with you guys because you get it. You understand the day-to-day grind of caregiving. The military has a saying about there being no easy day. I think we live in that reality. It's just not easy caring for another whole person, is it? Caregiving presents many difficulties. We can find ourselves alone, so very alone on this journey. It doesn't just go away. We don't just work through it. It seems to go on and on. There are lots of ups and downs - and that can be about every 90 seconds some days. Right? (smile!) As I've been working through this emotional maze the last few days, I turned my thoughts to Daniel. Let's take a realistic look at his circumstances because as we read his story in the Bible, we tend to glamorize i

Seasons Are Temporary

  This morning, I found myself reading in Isaiah 28. I ended up there because I was looking for something in particular, and even though I didn't find what I was looking for, I found what I needed. God's so cool like that, isn't He? My eyes first fell on verse 29, which says in the NKJ: This also comes from the Lord of hosts, Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance. I rolled that over in my mind and heart a few times and spent a few minutes thinking about how I'd seen His counsel in action in my own life. We've all had those times when we weren't sure what to do or where to go, and suddenly, an idea drops into our thoughts. There are many ways He provides direction for us. He may direct our steps through a passage of scripture, a trusted spiritual leader such as a pastor, a YouTube teacher, and maybe even a lowly blog writer. Lol. No matter how He chooses to deliver His counsel, it comes - but we must listen. After I had rolled these thoughts and t

Seek and Ye Shall Find

 Over the last few weeks, I've been trying to strategize ways of dealing with stress. It's something we all deal with, especially caregivers. I'm walking and exercising more, which helps the body get rid of stress and it helps improve sleep to some degree. But I've also been working on training my thoughts. I've been working on purposefully finding things to be thankful for. At first, it was a bit difficult because let's face it, caregiving is hard work.  This morning, I was plugging Chris into a nebulizer for a breathing treatment as he had an asthma attack yesterday afternoon after we'd been out for a little bit. As I was doing his treatment and his tube feeding, I didn't even really think about it; this "thought" just rolled up out of me. I thought, thank you, Lord, for carrying us through the long night. My own thankfulness surprised me! Lol. I realized at that moment that it's getting easier and easier to be thankful, even for the litt