The End is a New Beginning

You know that saying, when one door closes, God opens another.  

Or sometimes things have to fall apart so something better can fall together?  

What about, It's true that we don't know what we've got until we lose it.  But it's also true that we don't know what we've been missing until it arrives?

I've seen all of those in my past and the past of others.  And I cling to them often when things don't go just as 'I had planned'.  Each holds true to relationships, work, life, even where we live and in the tragedies of life.  And what it the thing you lost ends up being what you're brought back to?  I have a girlfriend that was laid off from Katy ISD with all of Texas' big education cuts at the end of last year.  A few weeks ago they asked her to come back!  Praise the Lord the same door that was closed was opened again!

What about relationships?  Can it work there too?  Absolutely!!  My mom and her husband were broken up for at least a month and then he showed up one day at 5:30 in the morning with roses and a heart filled with love and they've been married 12 years now.  BUT they both changed a lot in that time.  Then I have a friend from college who dated another one of my guy friends.  They broke up and now are engaged. The two of them were actually apart for almost exactly one year- with no talking or anything.  She says it was weird because they both started dreaming about each other and then he called her, kinda strange but God works in amazing ways!  Again, he had a lot of growing up to do before they could get to that point.

I tell you those stories with caution, because clearly, not every relationship is meant to get back together.  And you just might find if you break up you're happier, or you have a chance to discover who YOU really are :)

 

Even if we've confronted a concern in the best possible way, if we stay in the relationship, it's hard to tell if change has occurred and for what reason. It's like trying to repair a car while driving down the highway. You don't owe it to your friend to stay in the relationship. Either of you, short of the altar, may decide against the relationship. It's better to end the relationship now than to keep going and suffer for it!

The inevitable question arrives, "Can we still be friends?" This question is often an attempt by one to stay in the relationship. Many people slide back into their relationship because they were trying to be friendly; like trying to drill a new screw hole 1/8^th of an inch from the original. Many times, the end of a relationship will need to be firm and decisive. You are not a terrible Christian if you decide to end the relationship.  

If you do break off the relationship, give yourself the opportunity to grieve. You very well may be in love with that person, and even though ending the relationship may be the smartest thing you've ever done, it still hurts! Journal, identify your losses, and don't try to meet someone else too quickly.

~ Focus on the Family

I hope this encourages you to be content in your singleness, lost job, relocation, whatever it is you're going through.  And remember if you are going to God and listening for His direction, He'll lead you!