I was getting a little sad when Donald Miller started into Module Four on Relationships at THE STORYLINE CONFERENCE in Nashville last week. He asked us to identify primary relationships; those people who you “interact with daily in an intimate way; someone who you’d be able to say “I Love You” to and they’d say it back without either of you feeling awkward.”

I was sad because all my relatives are gone; my mother, father, brother, grandparents and aunts and uncles, and I’m single again. But then I noticed the note at the bottom of the page: “If you’re a spiritual person, we recommend listing God as a primary relationship and connecting with Him on a daily basis to bring light and balance to the rest of your relationships and provide an emotional and spiritual well-being that will allow you to better give to others.”

Yea! Even though I’m single and don’t have any relatives, I still have a PRIMARY RELATIONSHIP from which I gain “intimate emotional strength and support”: GOD.”

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this since the Conference last week. I’ve had a sustained period of time where my ONLY Primary Relationship is with God. Even during the end of my marriage, saying “I love you” had become awkward.

The Conference caused me to pause and realize that our primary and first love is God. If we can’t interact with him daily and be able to say “I Love You” and have him say it back without either of us feeling awkward, we are putting our love in the wrong place. As Donald said, “a primary relationship with God which involves connecting to Him daily provides the foundation so that we may love others more fully and show God’s love to everyone we meet.”

Rather than weeping at the thought that I have only one PRIMARY RELATIONSHIP, I am joyous that I have God in that category! It isn’t a negative to list a spouse, significant other, children or family members in your PRIMARY RELATIONSHIP category. But God needs to be there first and foremost and we need to be connecting with Him daily.

I pray that having God as your primary love is bringing you immense joy in all your other relationships!

Blessings,

Agatha

Managing Relationships- (click here for MP3 file)