Love Language Minute: The Art of Reconciliation: Part 1

Featured Book The Five Languages of Apology Conference Dates: August 28, 2010 Medinah Baptist Church 900 Foster Ave Medinah, IL 60157 September 4, 2010 Reigate Baptist Church Sycamore Walk Surrey RH2 7LR Reigate, UK The Art of Reconciliation: Part 1 Many relationships die for lack of an apology. Offenses are real and they fracture relationships. Time alone will not heal a broken relationship. The healing process begins with a sincere apology. The apology doesn't immediately restore the relationship, but it does open the door to forgiveness, and forgiveness opens the door to reconciliation. Is an Apology a Sign of Weakness?   Why then do some people find it so hard to apologize? Perhaps this is because they view apologizing as a sign of weakness. In reality, it is a sign of maturity. In an apology, I accept responsibility for my behavior. I'm showing that I value our relationship. Until you apologize, nothing is more important. Requesting Forgiveness Requesting forgiveness is one of the five apology languages. For some people it is their primary language. In their minds, if you don't request forgiveness, you have not apologized. One wife said, "All he ever says is, 'I'm sorry.' What is that supposed to mean?  Does he realize that he has done wrong? Does he want to be forgiven? Then why can't he ask for it?"   The reason he does not "ask for it" is that he may not know that requesting forgiveness is one of five ways to apologize. Most of us only learn one or two statements of apology as we grow up. To make a successful apology we may need to learn to speak another language.   Learning How to Apologize When Dr. Jennifer Thomas and I wrote our book, The Five Languages of Apology, we discovered that people apologize in different ways. What one person considers an apology is not what another person is looking for. He says, "I'm sorry," while she wants to hear him say, "I was wrong." Or, she says, "What can I do to make things right?"  And, he is saying, "For a start you can tell me what you are going to do to make sure this does not happen again tomorrow."  None of us are experts on apologizing, but the good news is that we can learn. Adapted from The Five Languages of Apology by Dr. Gary Chapman. To find out more about Dr. Chapman's resources, visit www.5lovelanguages.com. Saturday, May 15: Get Married Building Relationships Radio It's not easy being single in today's world, especially for single women. On this edition of Building Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman, Carolyn McCulley and Candice Watters talk about the world of singles, the struggles, the desires, and the opportunities. What are some common misconceptions about singles in the church? What can your church do to better help the singles in your congregation? Don't miss this practical episode. Featured resource for this program: Get Married by Candice Watters. Tune in to Building Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman, the weekly radio broadcast brought to you by Moody Radio and Moody Publishers. Listen live online Saturday mornings at 10 a.m. CST at moodyradio.org,check your local radio station, or download free podcasts and get more information.      View an archive of past emails.  Give your feedback. © 2010 Moody Publishers