A friend of mine asked me how I had kept the relationship with my children so close. I said, "With God's help, I work on the tapestry."
Relationships are a lot like large tapestries that receive a lot of use. Tapestries are large, beautiful works of art. They don't just happen, but they are crafted by hand little by little by someone paying attention to the details as they keep the overall design in mind. You might not like every place on the tapestry when you are looking very closely, but if you stand back at a distance, it can be very beautiful to behold!
With time, parts of tapestries can become worn. When we see the worn spot, we need to make haste to mend it so it can stay beautiful. It's like having a hole in the knee of a frequently worn, favorite pair jeans. That hole will grow quickly unless it is repaired promptly. Tapestries can only be fixed with interaction. If we abandon the tapestry because of the worn spots, it will continue to decay.
Relationships are also like ropes. They get frayed over the years. Tie the individual strings as you go, and the rope will continue to hold. Re-tying strings requires interaction and commitment. Have you ever seen an abandoned rope? It sits on the ground where it gets tangled and dirty. It decays from the weather until no one wants to touch it. With enough time and weather, it sinks into the ground until no one can tell it is there. Then it requires great effort to pull the rope from the soil.
Expecting not to have problems in any relationship is naive. Flawed people interact in flawed ways and build flawed relationships. Flawed relationships are designed to keep us seeking the Lord for help. Understanding other's brokenness, as well as our own, leads us to walk circumspectly* in our relationships knowing problems will arise.
*in a careful manner taking into consideration all circumstances with a desire to avoid mistakes and negative consequences
