Is There An Opposite in Your Life?

Do I Know You? 

It’s fascinating to see opposites living in nature. A cute animal attracted to its counter part. A litter of brown and white puppies, but just one is completely white. A litter of kittens, all gray and brown and just one is orange striped. The sun and the moon are opposites as are land and sea. How does a beautiful flower grow by itself in the middle of the harsh desert anyway?

Do Opposites Really Attract?

It appears this is true in much of creation. But it may or may not be true when talking about human relationships. We’ve seen or even experienced ourselves a couple who appear compatible, but are complete opposites. . .at least on the surface.

Many times a stark difference in personalities, values, likes and dislikes may seem exciting at first--filling in the gaps of what we think we don’t possess--but eventually, we realize something is wrong. Sometimes, we can't even identify the source of our unrest, but it’s there. If it goes on without any communication or resolution, it causes bumps, wrinkles, and anemia that goes deep into our souls.

Sometimes we don’t discover the “opposite” in our lives is weighing us down and causing a sense of dread. We find ourselves not answering the phone calls, avoiding dates with the new person in our lives, and making excuses or, worse yet, blaming ourselves for allowing the person to attract us in the first place.

But we are all humans. It happens. We can forgive ourselves for repeat offenses and learn from the past. Change is possible any time we put enough effort into finding the answer. One way is to train ourselves to recognize what we do not want in our lives; in other words, changing negatives to positives.

Opposites Game with a Twist

Match up the words in the first list with the opposite words in the second list (if it’s easier, list them in two columns on a piece of paper and draw lines connecting the two words). This is all about you, so there could be more than one choice in your selections, but choose only one to connect for now. Keep an open mind; there really is no right answer. Just have fun! Here's the twist: you will have one word in the second list left over. More on that later.

Restless

Helpless

Lonely

Afraid

Hurt

Sad

Small

Angry

Irritated

Ashamed

Numb

Stuck

Perplexed

Worried

Frustrated

Peaceful

Calm

Thankful

Elated

Proud

Content

Joyful

Euphoric

Merry

Relieved

Sedate

Cheerful

Satisfied

Happy

Upbeat

Assured

Which list would you say is driving your current relationship? Which list contains the most words you can identify with right now? Now, circle your leftover word in the second list. This is the one clue of what to work on first in your life; the rest will follow.

Your Counselor in All Relationships

God has a hopeful plan for each one of us! He uses the Bible to give us His answer to ALL our dilemmas, hurts, mistakes, and regrets. We can bring Him all our questions. His list of words are endless and each one is the right word every time for you!

We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (NLT)