Going "Deeper"

I've been watching the responses to my question on the level at which we are going with our spiritual partners.

For the group that desires to go deeper, here are some ideas to get you started:

1. Share deeply yourself -- often when one person begins to "go deeper", the other is given permission to do so themselves. Let me give you an example -- sorry ladies if this makes no sense to you -- When I go to my gym to work out, the locker room is filled with naked men! This is certianly not a typical scene in our culture, so what's happening? Well, essentially, permission has been given. If only one strange man was doing this, everyone else would run the other way -- and maybe call the police! But since a high percentage of guys are "joining the club", others feel perfectly fine in the "unbridled nakedness" of the locker room -- it suddenly is completely natural! You don't even notice after awhile. The same thing works here -- you open up, and it's more comfortable for the other person to do the same.

2. Ask each other this question for starters, "what are some things about you that I need to know to really "get" you, to know the real you? What makes you you?" Truth is that it's the "really get me" level things answers that are often the deeper, less obvious things -- childhood, upbringing, family life, past trauma, times in our life that were tough, etc.

For those who are still praying for someone, my advice would be to start "dating"! I know, I know! ...What I mean is that you should simply schedule coffee or lunch with someone in your small group or a fellow believer at work. Spend time getting to know them on a more surface level, talk about possible similarities in your lives, see where it goes. Then pray about trying it again, but go a little further. Eventually you'll know if you should "pop the question"!

I am convinced that the depth of relationships that we have will directly impact our growth as believers and take us further than we could have ever gone on our own.