Broken Relationships

FAQs

Q: Why is it important to mend broken relationships?

A: Because Jesus made it a priority!

Matthew 5:24 First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Q: What if it’s not my fault?

A: It does not matter. We are called to a higher calling.

Romans 12:18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.

Q: What if it’s not possible to make peace?

A: It is up to us to make an effort to make peace, but peace is not always possible between two individuals. We simply need to do our part, and leave the rest to God.

Q: What are some practical steps to mend a broken relationship?

A. Here are some steps that may be helpful in mending a broken relationship:

1. Go through it, not around it. The most difficult task for a person with a broken heart is to stand still and feel the crack. But that is exactly what she must do.

2. Stand on your own. One of the most liberating thoughts I repeat to myself when I’m immersed in grief and sadness is this: “I don’t need anyone or anything to make me happy.”

3. Detach. Attempting to fill the void yourself–without rushing to a new relationship or trying desperately to win your lover back–is essentially what detaching is all about.

4. List your strengths.

5. Help someone else.

6. Work it out. Work out your grief quite literally–by running, swimming, walking, or whatever.

7. Create a new world. Take this opportunity to try something new

8. Find hope. “There is one emotion that is stronger than fear, and that is forgiveness.” In order to forgive and to move past fear, you need to find hope.

9. Love deeply. Again and again. Once our hearts are bruised and burned from a relationship that ended, we have two options: we can close off or we can love again. Love deeply, just as intensely as we did before.[1]

Q: What if somebody is deeply hurt me what should I do?

A: Again we are called to a higher calling. Romans 12:17 says, Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men.

Q: What should we do when the other person is very much at fault?

A: Again, we are called to a higher calling. James 5:19 says, Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back.

Other scriptures related to how to deal with someone who is at fault:

Galatians 6:1 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.

2 Thessalonians 3:15 Yet do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

2 Timothy 2:24-26 And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.

[1] Therese Borchard, “12 Ways to Mend a Broken Heart,” This Emotional Life. PBS, No Publish Date. http://to.pbs.org/1At8XE2. (Accessed January 22, 2015).

Scriptures

Matthew 5:23-24 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Matthew 18:15 Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.

Romans 12:17 Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men.

Romans 12:18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.

Proverbs 18:19 A brother offended is harder to win than a strong city, And contentions are like the bars of a castle.

Proverbs 17:14 The beginning of strife is like releasing water; Therefore stop contention before a quarrel starts.

Proverbs 19:13 A foolish son is the ruin of his father, And the contentions of a wife are a continual dripping.

Proverbs 21:9 Better to dwell in a corner of a housetop, Than in a house shared with a contentious woman.

Proverbs 21:19 Better to dwell in the wilderness, Than with a contentious and angry woman.

Proverbs 27:15 A continual dripping on a very rainy day And a contentious woman are alike.

Genesis 27:41 So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, "The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob."