TWO-WAY STREET RELATIONSHIP

Every form of relationship requires some level of work by those involved in that relationship to make the relationship work or progressive.

God created and designed relationships to be a two-way street. Some relationships started off as sweet two-way street relationships but fell of to one-way street along the way.

A two-way street relationship is one that involves two or more people working together to achieve a common goal. This relationship could be in any form; in the marketplace, relationship between family members, between a superior and a subordinate, married couples or lovers .

Lets take a look at the different forms of relationships in a two-way street.

• BUSINESS

Imagine going to the market to get some stuff and immediately you start talking to the seller, a relationship has begun, but what makes that relationship effective and fruitful at the end of the day is if both of you come to a compromise after much negotiations as to what price the good should be sold and bought for. The seller doesn't go overboard with the price and the buyer is not unreasonable with his/her bargaining. This way both persons achieve a thing from each other.
"A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is his delight." Proverbs 11:1.
When each person is happy with the sale, a relationship is ensued. The customer will keep coming to the seller to buy goods and even recommend more customers to the sales person hence more sales and more profit for the salesman.

• ROMANTIC

A romantic relationship can never last long if its a one-way street relationship whether married or single in a relationship. A romantic relationship becomes a one-way street relationship when its only one person putting in every effort to make the relationship work. The one doing everything for the survival of the relationship will definitely feel frustrated some day and would want to quit the relationship.

You hear men preaching submission to their wives which of course is Biblical but if the woman keeps being submissive with no love, care or sense of responsibility from the man as commanded by the same Bible, she sure will some day rebel. There is a saying going online that states " Submission comes naturally when a woman is treated right." I believe this.

Same thing applies to women. A woman who refuses to be submissive despite her husband's love, care and provision would be some day shown the way out of the house. As a woman. you can't be crying lack of love from your husband when you fail to do the needful.

The Bible in Ephesians 5:22-33 has given each partner a responsibility for the survival of the relationship/marriage. So it can't be one-sided. As a man preaching submission to your wife, ensure to know what the Bible requires of you to do to and for your wife for the survival of the marriage and as a woman crying out to every one complaining of the lack of love from her husband, have you done the needful of what the Bible requires of you?

As a single in a relationship hoping to get married soon, you don't need to entangle yourself in a one-way street relationship just to keep the relationship. If you both value each other, then there will be an effort from both of you. One person can't keep the relationship going without the effort of the other person. If you do this out fear of being alone or loosing the person, you will continue this way in marriage if you both eventually end up in marriage and you still will feel lonely in that marriage.

A relationship can easily come to a ruin when it's one sided.

So there has to be a conscious effort from both parties to make the relationship work, in marriage or in courtship.

If one is facing a personal challenge, the other has to be there to help him/her pull through and if as a couple you both are facing a challenge or some challenges, you both can help each other pull through and not one person abandoning the ship when the ship is down.

One way to know if you are in a one-way street relationship is when you are the one doing most of the caring, communication, keeping in touch or doing more of the giving and not receiving.
It's meant to be both ways.

• FRIENDSHIP 

You can't be friends with someone you don't learn a thing from or can't have meaningful discussion with. Imagine being with a friend and all you do is talk and talk yet the other person is not making any meaningful contribution or is just mute while you do all the talking. You sure will get tired and would want to call it a day. You ought to learn from each other, spiritually, intellectually, physically, emotionally, politically, economically and otherwise.
Your friends should be able to contribute something meaningful in your life just as you do in theirs.
They should be able to to help you pull through life's challenges and vice versa. Don't be the kind of friend that is always receiving and not giving in any kind.

I have this male friend online who is happily married with kids but never seen him. We developed an understanding relationship. He never hid his marital status and has never asked me out. He got to know my kind of person and what I stand for and vice versa. The astonishing thing about this relationship is that it has grown to the point where we talk about anything, express ourselves to each other in the purest form. We learn from each other and encourage each other through life's challenges. As  a single lady, I have gained more knowledge from him the kind of man a lady should have and settle for. He encourages me never to settle for less and not give in to unnecessary pressures and would always advice I  pursue my dreams and be focused no matter the difficulties encountered.
From me, he has also learnt a lot I believe as he always says "thank you for listening and understanding me".  He once said to me " Your optimism gives me faith in other aspects of my life".
 Now that is a two-way street relationship.

I have also met female friends online whom I have never seen but we have been there for each other through life's thick and thin. There are these three special South African female friends I met online whom I have never seen but are more like sisters to me. No dull moment with them. We encourage and pray for each. They are sure my soul sisters from a distance. One of them (Patricia Makgobi) I call my twinnie because we so understand each other and feel each other's pains when in trying moments. The second one (Lorraine Trump) is a fire brand prophetess whom I fondly call Queen Lo and the last but not the least, Victoria Tsholofelo, a prayer warrior princess who represents South Africa so well with her attires and always ready to listen when contacted.
This goes a long way to show  that irrespective of the kind of relationship you are in with anyone either close by or from a distance, one you have seen and never seen, you can always have a two-way street relationship in order to benefit a thing or two from each other.
"The righteous choose there friends carefully, but the way of the wicked lead them astray". Proverbs 12:26.
"One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother".  Proverbs 18:24

• PROFESSIONAL

In a work place, subordinate-superior relationship can not yield result when the relationship is one sided. Imagine where a staff is being paid but yet does little or nothing to contribute to the growth of the company where he or she is being paid, the end result will be a sack letter handed over to that person. It could also be the other way round where a staff gives in all his/her best including all his time to his work but paid little or is  unappreciated for his/her effort then that staff will definitely feel frustrated and would want to leave. So there has to be a balance in the work place between a superior and a subordinate.

A case study is the relationship between the Centurion and his servant in Luke 7:2. In this verse, you get to see how the Centurion was so concerned about the health and well being of his servant that he would go all out to ensure his servant is well, up and doing. This shows that the servant must have endeared his master through noble service, being hardworking and faithful to his job. The servant's hard work and faithfulness to his job earned him a place in the heart of his master.
Now, if the Master wasn't good to his servant, the servant would not have worked hard to earn a place in the heart of the master. This is a two-way street relationship.

• FAMILY

For a relationship between parents and children, the Bible is already clear on that. As a parent/parents who want the best from their kids, they will do well to train up the child properly in all ramification.

I watched a video of recent where a lady complained of not knowing how to cook but is ready for marriage. According to her, she grew up with lots of house helps doing all the chores including cooking. Now she is ready to get married but can't cook. This goes to show she wasn't properly domesticated by her parents hence her fear of what will happen when she eventually gets married.

"Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it". Proverbs 22:6

Some parents end up being abandoned by their children at old age due to lack of care, love and affection for their children at tender age. There are parents who care more about themselves than the well being of their children forgetting the kids are watching and keeping record of their every action.

"Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord." Ephesians 6:4

Just as God requires of parents to do the needful as regards their children, so does He require of children to their parents. He says " Honour your father and your mother,  that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God has given you." Exodus 20:12

"Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." Ephesians 6:1.

So many verses in the Bible showing parent-child relation as a two way street. 

To get the best out of your kids, give them the best you can with proper home training and as children, respect and honour your parents to get the best out of them. They might be well stricken in age but their blessings and prayers for you never grow old.

The relationship between siblings go along way to show the nature of their upbringing by their parents. If these children are taught how to love from childhood, it will reflect in their relationship with one another and how they relate with people outside the home. If they are taught how to be respectful, it will show in their relationship with one another and how they respect elders outside their homes. But most of all, the relationship between siblings can either destroy the family or build the family. When one is down, the other(s) will always help bring him or her up and this is because they have been taught by their parents on how to love.

For every relationship to survive, it needs every one involved to thrive. One person can't do it all. Only a very selfish person will sit back to do all receiving without making an effort to make an impact in the other person's life. As an individual, ensure to make impacts in the lives of people you come across.

Quote for the day - " A relationship is a two-way street. It is never all your fault or the other persons.

You go into it together and work all through it together." - Anonymous  

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