The Relational Idealist Erwin | From The Archives

When you become a relational idealist, when you begin to believe in others, you're not free from wounds. Jesus was betrayed by a kiss, so don't be surprised when you are. And I can make the world better when I believe in people. Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit. When God believes in you, you start becoming what he sees in you. You have to actually learn how to celebrate with others. It's really, really easy to like people when they're doing poorly.

Last year when our company collapsed, I had so many people who liked me. It's so much easier to be a friend when that friend has a world that's falling apart. But when the world thins out, the world has to celebrate your success. This is what the economy of God is like. We like people when they are in the same condition as usual or worse. But we don't like it when people seem to get what they got by working less or got more than we got by not earning it. Why is it easier to celebrate your success when someone else has failed?