Love cannot exist without relationship.
One of the powerful components of the Trinity is that it shows us how God exists in relationship, and it is all about love.
The way that Jesus, Sarayu, and Papa relate to each other in The Shack give us ideas of how we can relate to one another.
Their relationship was built on:
- Love
- Openness
- Mutual respect
- Enjoyment of one another
Stop and think about the relationships you hold most dear to you.
They can be a friendship, a relationship with a spouse or significant other, or a family member.
What makes that “relationship” a “relationship?”
Most likely, it all boils down to two words, “experiences together.”
Our lives are built on experiences. Each day there are many experiences that we live through, some good, some bad. At the end of the day they combine together to form “that day” then the days come together to form a week, weeks into months, months into years.
As we go throughout our lives, those experiences are fundamental in building our relationships and our relationships are fundamental in building our lives.
How could our lives (and our relationships) be different if we began being very intentional about each of those experiences?
Each of Jesus’ experiences with the disciples grew his relationship with them. Those relationships could be built on a hierarchy – because after all, he was the Son of God. But Jesus did not assert power or authority in degrading or demonstrative ways. He led boldly, taught clearly, and loved unabashedly – and these things created experiences and ultimately relationships that were grounded in love.
Where can we put more time and energy into our relationships so that experiences work together to form bonds that are not easily broken?
Perhaps like Jesus said to the followers of John the Baptist, we can say to one another . . . “Come, and see.” Inviting others into our lives to “come, see” is one of the greatest things we can offer – the gift of ourselves. Just like Christ offered us.
John 1:
35-36 The next day John was back at his post with two disciples, who were watching. He looked up, saw Jesus walking nearby, and said, “Here he is, God’s Passover Lamb.”
37-38 The two disciples heard him and went after Jesus. Jesus looked over his shoulder and said to them, “What are you after?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
39 He replied, “Come along and see for yourself.”
They came, saw where he was living, and ended up staying with him for the day. It was late afternoon when this happened.