Come now, let’s make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as a witness between us. Genesis 31:44

There’s an old word used to describe commitment, like the commitment in a marriage, and it’s this:  covenant.  A covenant is weightier than a simple agreement, and one characteristic of a covenant is that two previously separate people become a single team through their agreement. Covenants are sacred in the Bible, but not everyone who enters into an agreement makes a covenant.

Here are 5 ways to honor and strengthen covenant agreement:

First, when you think of covenant, think of the classic wedding vow, “for better or worse.” When unforeseen hardships crop up, it’s covenant behavior that sticks it out.  The person who takes off when things get hard isn’t committed to covenant.

A covenant is a bond over a common goal. A common spiritual goal, such as having a marriage that brings God into a relational “cord of three,” brings solidarity of purpose.

Communication is always essential but think about it with a different twist.  Covenantal communication is about being honest and vulnerable with others, cultivating a safe listening environment for others to be honest and vulnerable with you.

Covenant relationships involve a commitment to forgiveness. The people closest to us can wound us the most, but don’t give up easily on restoration. Overlook petty grievances, and at every opportunity, keep a short memory of your partner or friend’s faults.

Finally, commit to serving the other person. A covenant partner or friend routinely goes out of their way for the benefit of the other.

 

Resource reading: Ephesians 5:21