UNDERSTANDING

PRAYER: Lord help us to be more understanding in our relationship with one another. Allow us to pay attention to our partners cries within. Give us ears to hear and lips slow to speak.

VERSE OF THE DAY: Amos 3:3

Growing up there was an R&B group that was very popular known as “Xscape”. This was one of my favorite groups no different than R&B group “TLC”. They both were an all female group and they were very popular amongst my age group at the time. “Xscape” seemed to have this one song that played on the radio called “Understanding”. It speaks of a couple having communication problems. The woman is begging and pleading that her man hears her voice and sees how she is feeling within. All she wanted and needed from him was understanding.

How often are you in a relationship or a marriage and you don’t feel like your voice is being heard? You may want that person to change or do something different but truth be told you don’t have the power nor the ability to change anybody. I don’t care how much you pray, the only person who can change somebody is the individual themselves. God has the ability to harden or soften the heart but the only time He moves on this is for His glory, not for your own. So stop trying to change people who don’t want to change and possibly let them face the consequences of not wanting to change for the better.

For example, if you have a gambler or alcoholic living within your household who uses the bill money for their own fulfillment and enjoyment, when the lights get cut off and they are in the dark then let this be an eye opener of their own consequences. The choices you make become not only an issue for them but for the entire household. Somewhere along the lines understanding may presume its rightful place. You can’t be their savior or their parent either if they are an adult. They must make their own decision to meet you half way.

So I encourage you today to look at your own personal relationships and ask yourself are you being understanding? Are you listening to the cries of your partner? Are you meeting them half way? Are your needs being fulfilled and met? Are you seeking God for wisdom and understanding of your own? Are you asking God to help you change for the better of saving your relationship? Listening to one another and communicating in an effective manner will take you both very far. Be mindful that “all they need from you is understanding. It’s so simple as 1-2-3. Understanding is what they need”.