“Love others well, and don’t hide behind a mask; love authentically.” ~ Romans 12:9

Loving well inside the home with our housemates takes practice and commitment to put love in action! Loving well takes intention, heart, courage, and a willingness to look at ugly stuff sometimes. 

Relationships, which all of us have regardless of marital status, bring up tons of  awesome stuff as well as some of the ugly stuff. And this should come as no surprise! These “issues” that when met with a healthy outlook, resilience, and willingness to tell the truth can be a huge blessing. But on the other hand, if they are met with fear, avoidance, blaming, and self-loathing, what was meant to bless and enhance your life can quickly turn to disaster. 

Loving well requires us to become masters of commitment, both conscious and unconscious commitments that we have made with ourselves and others. In order to have vibrant relationships we must look at our commitment level. Here are a series of questions that will help you identify your commitment level, and get you thinking about commitment.  

Are you “all in”? Or do you have one foot out the back door? Are you more, or less, invested in the relationship(s) than the other party is in the relationship? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to have a vibrant, healthy relationship? How do you know? 

Are you unconsciously committed to toxic drama in your relationships? Are you unconsciously committed to not receiving enough affection or attention? Are you unconsciously committed to not getting your needs met? How do you know? 

One way to know that wonky commitments are negatively impacting your relationships is that the same issues crop up almost on replay, and you either feel you can do nothing about it, or you have given up and resigned yourself to accept less than what you need. 

Prayer

God, you are my closest Companion. Thank you for shining your love light on the innerworkings of my relationships. I know you want me to be at peace and to enjoy harmony with my companions. Grace me, and us, to have the courage to love well. I yield to your leadership, Holy Companion. I trust you with my love life. Thank you in advance for making me whole in every way. Amen.