"There is only one way to rebuild trust once it has been broken: Over time. Anything else isn't real. And if you've broken trust, you should expect to do some serious work to rebuild it... if they choose to allow it. Betrayal is the worst... and the key to moving past it is to identify what led up to it in the first place."-Charles J. Orlando

"Stop looking to everyone else to make you happy and start finding ways that you can make other people happy."-Joyce Meyer

"All relationships are filled with good times and challenging times. "For better, or for worse." However, if the challenging times run for years, it's not called a "rough spot in the relationship"... it's become a way of life."-Charles J. Orlando

"[Forgiveness in relationships] The Very Weak don't know how to forgive, they only hate and/or get rid of you. The Very Strong forgive, but then never forget — and they never let YOU forget. My advice: Some things might be unforgivable... but if you DO want to forgive them, you need to find a place in between Strong and Weak. Forgiveness isn't the same as acceptance. Accepting how someone hurt you doesn't work, as it means you are okay with what they did... but you CAN forgive and move on… and do it without hate or resentment. To start the process of forgiveness, you just need to realize that what they did wasn't about you... it was about them—their shortcomings."-Charles J. Orlando

"In years gone by, a man would court a woman to be his wife. But in our day, a man courts a woman to be his girlfriend. How lame is that? Woman are left holding the short end of the stick, giving away their hearts to men who have not yet declared their intentions and in most cases don't even know what their intentions are. In our public teaching on this topic, we frequently tell women, "Don't give your heart away until you know what he plans to do with it." And we tell the men, "Stop being irresponsible. Don't try to win a woman's heart unless you plan on keeping it." So women, please listen up: a man has nothing permanent to offer you apart from a marriage proposal. Don't settle for second rate!"-Gerald Hiestand and Jay S. Thomas

"When you make it clear you care about someone, and they go hot and cold ("I love you, too." — followed by a week of no contact from them — rinse and repeat), it's not "mixed message". In truth, they are sending a CLEAR message that they aren't really sure of their feelings. My advice to you: When you're falling in love, make sure you're not the only one who's falling. My advice to them: Just because you are unclear of YOUR feelings doesn't give you the right to play with someone else's. Get honest and tell them the truth — even if that truth isn't exactly what they want to hear... at least they will know how you *actually* feel."-Charles J. Orlando

"Waiting for God's timing can be difficult. Things look good from our view, so we want to rush ahead of God's timing for us. God knows what's best and his timing is always perfect. Where do you need to take a step back and wait for God to lead you? Ask God for patience."-LADD

"To those who find themselves in bad relationships, but then justify it by saying, "Oh well. You can't choose who you love" — Here's the street-smart truth: You ARE choosing who you love, and it's unfortunately a reflection of what you think you're worth."-Charles J. Orlando

"A woman should never invest in a relationship she wouldn't want for her daughter, nor allow any man to treat her in a way she would scold her son for."-Charles J. Orlando

"The right relationship brings out your best YOU. The wrong one makes you doubt not only what you do… but who you are."-Charles J. Orlando

"If you are saying things to yourself like, "I need to help them." "I can save them." "If they love me, they will change." "I am nothing without them"… you are exhibiting signs of co-dependency. Those statements are all red flags… for YOURSELF."-Charles J. Orlando

"Keeping our focus on our problems rather than on God’s love shields us from receiving His peace and love that transcends all understanding. Where as, if we focus our hearts on the presence of God, His peace will shield us from the despair of our own problems.  Next time you find yourself in difficult times, take thirty seconds to close your eyes and whisper His name and receive His peace."-Keith Knight

"You cannot spend the rest of your life weeping about who forsook you and who left you and the job you didn't get and the opportunity that didn't happen. If it had been good for you, you would have gotten it. Everything that was closed off is a sign it wasn't good for you. If God didn't give it to you, then you didn't need it. You need to rest in the sovereign will of God. God has a plan for your life."-TDJ

 

Today, my oldest son's car was broken into. A credit card was stolen and used for gas and pre-paid wireless cards. My son's response was... "I hope that gas takes them somewhere and those wireless minutes put them in touch with someone, where or from whom they are presented with an opportunity to catch a break, experience grace, and have something good happen in their life."-Doris Little

"When the one you deeply love hurts you, it forever changes the way you deal with anyone that attempts to get close to you."-Adrian Body

"Trials rip away the flimsy fabric of self-sufficiency and become the raw material for God’s miracles in our lives. And those miracles are a sudden glory."-Sharon Jaynes

"The answer is simple—faith. Faith to know the sun will rise, the pain will go away, and our God has not left you or forsaken you."-TDJ

"God has got your tomorrow covered even though you haven't been there yet. Trust Him."-Tony Evans