Live Like a Banker

The other day I was having lunch with a friend, and ministry partner, here in Vegas.  As we were talking he brought up a principle that I have neglected thinking about recently.  As we were talking my friend reminded me to live like a banker.  I was confused for a minute and then the flashes in my mind became reality.  I became convicted because recently I have forgotten to live out a principle that I had done fairly well earlier in life (now at this point I could give you the list of my failures and reasons for not applying it but that is not the point of this post).  The point of this post is to talk about living like a banker.

See in every relationship we have a "bank account" with that person.  Now when you first start the relationship there is little room for withdrawals and most of the interactions, if you want to keep the relationship healthy, need to be deposits.  Deposits are normally in the form of; encouragement, gifts, acts of service or affirmation (but are not limited to these areas).  Maybe you have helped the person out when they got a flat tire and this got you a huge deposit in the account; think of things like this.

As time goes on and your bank account with that person increases you can now make withdrawals in that relationship.  Withdrawals can come in the form of asking for help when you find yourself in a tough spot.  They can be talking to the person about a difficult subject where you see the person could grow.  A withdrawal could be calling the person out when they have blatant sin in their life and no one else has the guts to tell them.  Withdrawals come in many forms.

There are some relationships you have in life that are constantly close to empty because the exchange is constant.  There are some relationships that you have that are thriving because you both make deposits into the others life and if there happens to be a withdrawals here or there it is not detrimental to the relationship.  There are some relationships we tolerate in life just because we work with the person, see them regularly or have to interact.   There are some relationships in life where you had to close the account because there is nothing left to keep the relationship going.

What is going on in your relational banking right now?  Do you have some accounts that you have neglected that need to get a deposit in them immediately so you can keep it open?  Do you have some accounts that are overdrawn and you need to ask for forgiveness because you have not managed the account well?  Do you have some accounts where you have the freedom to make a withdrawal that will help the other person?  Are you living life like a banker right now or just a person who is only thinking about their personal needs and gain?