Three of God's Ideas for Better Communication

The other day, someone posted a meme that said, “Lukewarm Christianity has become so normal that Biblical Christianity seems radical.”

It made me think of some of the things God’s taught me to do.

At first, I struggled, but now I can’t help but do them. And I’m grateful for His lessons because even though they’re hard, I wouldn’t want to live another way because it’s changed my relationships for the better.

What am I talking about?

Three of God’s Ideas for Better Communication:

confessing,
apologizing,
and forgiving.

Confession is a communication skill.

Years ago, I took a Bible study. We had homework every night and it started with those two words. Then they gave you space to fill in the workbook before you went on to the rest.

Growing up in New England, lots of my friends were Catholic. We’d play on the swingset at recess and they’d tell me what it was like to go to confession.

It intrigued me, and I sort of wanted to try it. But during this Bible study, what came to mind was, “I don’t have to do that; I’m not Catholic!”

Next in line for confession, one of God's Ideas for Better Communication.

Photo by Shalone Cason.

Of course, that’s not true.

There are lots of verses in the Bible that encourage us to confess.

And 1 John 1:9 goes on to say,

“If we confess our sins,
he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (NIV).

And we all want that, right? God forgives everything, but you have to confess before He does that. Trust me, you don’t want to carry sin around with you. What was I thinking?

Do you have a regular time
when you clear the slate
with the Lord?

During the Bible study, I got used to confessing my sins every night.
Now, I aim to wipe that slate clean ASAP.
But it’s still great to flip through the day’s events as I crawl into bed,
come into agreement with God as to where I messed up,
and know He’ll cast all that into the sea of forgetfulness!

If you don’t already,
you might want to try it.

It helps you sleep better!

Apologies will help your communication.

Sometimes just the understanding that I’d have to apologize after would keep me from doing something I shouldn’t.

The first time God nudged me to apologize, I sat in the bathtub and whined like a baby. Why did I have to apologize when it was Dad who teased me? I had to apologize for my reaction.

In a bathrobe and slippers with my hair in a towel, I stood at the door to the living room and screamed at my Dad, “I’m sorry!” And as I blubbered whatever else I said, he immediately apologized.

We didn’t usually do that in our family.

An apology, another one of God's great ideas for better communication.

But between Dad and me,

who spent a lot of time together that season, it became an immediate change in the way we interacted.

Mom was floored the first time she saw it happen.

“How did you get your Dad to do that?” she demanded to know. Then I realized how easy it really was, so shared my secret with her. I said, “I just went first.”

When we’re willing to follow God,
He does some amazing things!

Are you a regular apologizer?

I cannot tell you how good it feels.
It feels great to get everything off your chest.
But even better, it’s amazing how good it feels
when it becomes part of your dynamic with loved ones.

Forgiving people is a superpower!

Whenever I feel angst, I pick up my journal and list every single person I’m upset with, even if I don’t know his/her name. Sometimes, I forgave them yesterday, but I do it again.

If it’s still tweaking me, I’ll keep doing it until it stops.

It really helps when I can name exactly what it is that I am forgiving in as much detail as possible.

Let’s be radical!

Image by Chil Vera.

Blessings will rain down on you

if you start doing these three simple, I didn’t say easy, but simple things.

For some reason, when you go first, that helps others to apologize, also. And you can see how much better they feel afterward by the look on their faces.

We all make mistakes. But for some reason, we haven’t all learned how to incorporate these three simple things as a regular part of our communication with those around us. But we can really affect the change we wish to see!

What if you carried the scent of the Lord?

Patrick Swayze once remarked,

“Someone told me my house smelled like dogs,
so I asked them, ‘Do you even know what a dog smells like?’

It smells of gratitude, loyalty, nobility, affection, and pure, unconditional love.

Despite everything they’ve been through,
they don’t carry the scent of resentment.
I feel truly blessed that my home smells like dogs.”

Dear God,

Thank You
for calling us to live this way.
You know how much better
it makes us feel.

And You love us so much,
You want us to have
healthy relationships.