Podcast: Play in new window
Do you ever stop to think about how well your relationships are going? More likely than not, your honest answer to that question would be “no.” It’s so easy to take our relationships for granted, especially those that are most important.Consider this: even though many of us will go in for annual checkups to assess our physical well-being, we hardly ever think about regularly assessing the health of our various relationships—how well we are relating to our friends, family, and acquaintances. Many of us aren’t well-trained to even recognize the symptoms which can signal that a relationship has been infected and needs treatment.
The main thing I want you to take away from today’s podcast is that you can and should have a plan in place for fighting off the relational attacks which are inevitable. Instating practical preventative measures now can prevent unnecessary heartache down the road and better prepare you to love from a healthy place in every season of life.
In every relationship, both we and our loved ones bring our own personal health to the table: the good, the bad, and the ugly. It is completely natural that relationships will go through varying seasons because we as individuals go through varying seasons in our lives. Everything won’t be perfect all of the time; sometimes, for example, we or our spouse might be stressed about work or grieving the loss of a family member. Those things can’t be helped. But as we better understand ourselves and the nature of relationships, we will be better able to navigate these seasons, showing a greater love for each other through them.
Debra Fileta, the author of Love in Every Season, helps us to understand the four different seasons that are common to every relationship we experience. Beyond defining what those seasons are, Debra explains how to practically navigate each of those seasons well. If you’ve never thought about assessing your relational health, or you feel that some of your relationships have become strained, this is an episode you will definitely want to listen to.
Listen: our relationships will only be as strong as we are. We won’t do any good in our relationships unless we start with the planks before moving to the specks (Matthew 7:5). It doesn’t matter whether you are single, dating, engaged or married—the principles shared in this episode will be beneficial to any relationship you want to grow and develop. I hope you are helped as you listen.
Highlights from Today’s Episode:
- Identifying the different seasons of relationships
- Assessing your own relational health
- Fighting relationship “drift”
- Responding to “cracks” in your relationships
Resources from today’s show
- Grab a copy of Debra’s book, Love in Every Season.
- Connect with Debra on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or on her website.
- Take the “Is your relationship healthy?” quiz.
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- “If you don’t take care of the roots, weeds will continue to grow.” -Debra Fileta
- “Living healthy is an ongoing process; it happens over time.” – Debra Fileta
- “When you start doing the work, it will have an impact on your spouse.” – Debra Fileta
- “Do what you can, and trust God with what you can’t.” – Debra Fileta
Other Stuff to Check Out
- Did you catch my last episode with Jasmine Holmes? Listen here.
- Need to encourage your soul? Try listening to the playlist I put together for my mom, Lady Lois’ Worship
- Interested in supporting the content I create and enjoying bonus content? Learn about joining my Inner Circle!
- My book, Be sure and also check out my other books She’s Still There,
- 28 Days of Prayer, Show Up For Your Life, Kingdom Woman!
Let’s Talk!
After you’ve listened to the podcast, I’d love to continue the conversation. Be sure and leave a comment!
- Do you currently take time to assess or check in on your relationships? If so, how do you do that?
- What habits have you found to keep you in a healthy place? Please share them below!
- Which of the four relational seasons mentioned by Debra are you currently in? How do you feel about that season?
- What did Debra share that challenged you? After listening, in what way(s) will you handle your relationships differently?
Connect with me…
How to Listen to The Podcast
If you’re new to podcasts, think of them like little radio shows that you can listen to at your convenience. They are perfect to listen to and learn from as you workout, fold laundry, wash dishes or conquer the world.
1. Listen right here on the blog. Click the little play button at the beginning of this post.
2. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play! – Be sure and subscribe so you don’t miss an episode! Also, if you would be so kind as to leave a rating on iTunes and/or write a 2-3 sentence review there or on Stitcher? Your commentary or rating helps make the podcast more “findable” by others who might not know it exists!
3. Share today’s show – Email the link to a friend or share on social media. Just click on the sharing buttons at the bottom of this post!
You have been so great to join me on the journey here on the blog, I hope you jump right in and do the same on the podcast!
This is awesome stuff! I was that girl who thought marriage is Everything,I wasn’t even aware that I put it on a pedestal until you shred a light on that…marriage is beautiful and I love love but I just realized that in a way I’ve been worshiping the idea of marriage. You just flipped a table on something I’ve been unconsciously holding in the highest regard in for the past 8 years…