Are you familiar with this biblical metaphor: “God is the potter, we are the clay.”? It is primarily found in Isaiah 64:8 and Jeremiah 18? Also, what about the word “cultivate”? In a biblical context, “cultivate” means to care for, nurture, and improve something, often with the intention of promoting growth and development in a personal relationship.

How did your breathing exercises go last week in Part One? If you struggled with this exercise with little success, allow me to share a little advice. Always remember that when you inhale air through your nose, your stomach should become filled with the incoming air. And it goes without saying, when you exhale through your noise, the stomach should deflate. You will get better at this exercise the more you try it.

My second question is more intimate and personal. Did you approach an acquaintance of yours that you wanted to develop a closer relation with. And…they put you off and you made a quick judgement call that perhaps you picked the wrong person. If that happened, may I suggest that you rethink the occasion. Try to remember if you have had any encounters with that person on any subject. Maybe in the break room or at the water cooler. Was anything discussed of interest to you both. Try to focus on events that interest your new subject. During your private bible study time employ the Holy Spirit to critique your approach and direct your efforts towards more positive encounters.

I’m quit sure Paul sent up a similar prayer in the Book of Acts 26:8-27 as he interviewed before King Agrippa in a persuasive manner. That conversation will give you some do’s and don’ts on conducting an initial encounter with a newbie. Allow the Holy Spirit to be your guide. And remember to give Him all the glory and successes you will have as you grow in cultivating relationships.

Every Born Again Christian must be able to proclaim why he or she has a hope in the Glory of the Promises of the life and death of our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus.

P.S. So, to rectify what went wrong the first time is to figure it out through self-examination. Revisit the title of this blog. The key word is ‘cultivate’. This action alone requires time, patience, prayer and intuition. Sometime you can rely on your gut feeling or sixth sense”.

Having intuition means possessing an innate or immediate understanding or awareness of something. Often without conscious reasoning or logical deduction. All you did was to rely on a “gut feeling” or “sixth sense”.  But may I suggest that you run it by the Holy Spirit during your prayer time.

Just look at all the accomplishments you will satisfy while cultivating this task. Namely, developing a closer walk with Jesus, lightening your load of anxieties…fear, dread and uneasiness.

Let’s pray…

Oh my God, blessed are you and your Son, Christ Jesus. He never let an opportunity to pass Him by to tell people about You. Make me, too, a diligent and enthusiastic witness so that people will come to salvation through what I say in my efforts to cultivate new friendships. For I truly want to proclaim Your message and live in such a way that people will be able to see from my actions that I am serious about my faith. Please help me to get this right. And I will forever give You all the praise, honor and glory. Amen and Amen.

Click www.tgifmasterminds.com every Friday for a new post from
the Master's servant Manager...Me!