RUN LIKE A CHAMPION

Healthy Relationships – Part 1
Sammy Tippit: I want to welcome you back to our daily devotional with Dr. Walt Larimore where we’re talking about health and developing a healthy lifestyle. He has written a book 10 Essentials of Highly Healthy People. It’s just a book. I hope you’ll get it because we’re discussing some of the principles that are in that book.
We’re going to move today into talking about relationships. Walt, this is perhaps for men the most difficult thing because women seem to be better at developing relationships than guys. Maybe that’s overgeneralizing it, but I think that’s probably true. Tell me where some of the needs in men are when it comes to relationships. Where do we fall short? What are we doing wrong? Why is it we have such a tough time?
Walt Larimore: Yeah, well, I think sometimes that independent streak we have tends to lead us to avoid relationships and can actually wreck relationships. I kind of think of family relationships in one sphere and then relationships out of the family and others. So in those family relationships for the men who are married, we know married men have measurably better health than unmarried men.
Sammy: That’s interesting.
Walt: A healthy marriage can amplify that effect. In other words, a man who invests in improving his marriage, which is a lifelong task, is a man who will improve his physical, his emotional, and his spiritual health. Investing in that marriage. For example, with Barb and I, that involves being sure we spend time together. It involves going to some marriage conferences. Now we’ve written marriage books, but we still go to marriage conferences.
I remember we went to a marriage conference a few years back. We got there a little bit late, so we sat on the back row. Then a couple came and sat down next to us. I looked, and it was Dr. James Dobson and his wife, Shirley. They have written how many marriage books? I said, “What are you doing here?” Jim said, “We go to marriage conferences because I work on investing and improving my marriage.” So marriage health.
Your relationship with your children. If God has given you the blessing of having the gift of children, spending and investing time with them is critical. Nobody can replace a daddy’s impact on his son and his daughter. Nobody. It’s the most important impact on kids.
When it comes to our non-marriage relationships, Sammy, I see that in three areas. One is (and we mentioned it last time) having a mentor, choosing someone who can be a coach and a guide for you. Maybe meet once a month, once every three months, once a week. But having that mentor.
Second, having an accountability group of guys who are in the same stage of life you are. Maybe the same type of business, same type of family, but having that accountability group. Then have some guys you pour into who you disciple who are coming behind you. Men who do that (who emphasize those family relationships and those out-of-family relationships) have measurably better health. Does it take time? You bet, but it’s critical to your health.
Sammy: So there are three groups. Let’s go over those three groups again with me outside-the- family relationship. There’s the mentor relationship. There are those who you are mentoring. Then there’s the accountability group.
Walt: That’s it. That’s the three.
Sammy: Okay. I think that will be helpful, and I want to encourage men to do that. If you don’t have a group of guys who you meet with on a regular basis, I want to encourage you to seek out a group of men maybe in your church, at work, some guys you know who you can really share your heart with and be honest and transparent with. That will help you in developing your relationships.