Letters to Annie: Lasting Relationships are Built Upon Trust and Honesty

Dear Annie,

            It will always be you. I can’t imagine what my life will be if there is no you. When you said you love me, I trust you. I trust you to be faithful because you also want me to be faithful to you too and I want nothing else, except for you to be happy. I read in the book of Zechariah 8:16, “These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another; render honest and peaceful judgements in your gates.” God is the God of truth, and to trust is to tell the truth. Let us be transparent to one another.

            From my observations and personal failures, I learned that lasting relationships are built upon honesty and trust. Without trust, people soon drift apart. But with trust, relationships grow and flourish (But envy, jealousy and unwarranted suspicious are trio-evils in relationships). Even though we’re not married yet, I like what Ed Young recommends to young couples in his book, “Trust is like ‘money in the bank’ in a marriage. There must be a reasonable amount of it on deposit to ensure the security of a marital union.” As Christians, by God’s grace we should always be trustworthy, encouraging and loyal. “The single most important element in any human relationship,” writes Catherine Marshall, “is honesty – with oneself, with God, and with others.” We should be thankful for the people who are loyal to us. I’m very thankful for you.

            I asked myself, Do I want Annie to trust me? and Do I want my friends to trust me? Yes, yes for both. Then I thought, if I want people to trust me, I should first be a friend that they can trust. We first become who we want people to be and to treat us. We don’t demand trust. We grow it, we give it away – we earn it. If we ever having an issue of trust in the future, let’s take Charles Swindoll advice: “Whatever you do when conflicts arise, be wise. Fight against jumping to quick conclusions and seeing only your side. There are always two sides on the streets of conflict. Look both ways.”

 I want to build a firm foundation of trust with you – no shaky foundations. A foundation of meaningful relationships. If we want our relationship to last, trust God, be honest and trustworthy. But then again, let’s not too focus on ourselves. God is our greatest priority, without Him we are nothing. Psalms 20:7 says, “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses [some in human relationships]: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God” (Bracket mine).

God be honour and gloried in us.

I call you tonight.

I miss you.

Your faithful,

Richard

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.