Difficult Relationships - Christian Wisdom for Life's Toughest Ties

The ONE Trait Guaranteed to Attract Manipulators


Listen Later

Want to learn how to identify and deal with all the difficult people in your life?  Grab your FREE Toxic People Survival Guide here.
https://krisreece.com/toxic-people-survival-guide
Do you ever wonder why your relationships start out great but then turn into a confusing, one-sided mess that leaves you scratching your head and wondering Why do I ALWAYS attract these people? 

 Maybe you even feel torn between the desire to see it through and the urge to run for the hills. 

 Today, I’m going to explain in detail why your greatest life strength is likely your worst relationship weakness AND give you the three steps needed to stop being taken advantage of by these parasitic, freeloaders. 

 Understanding this one problem will help you recognize why your relationships aren’t as mutually beneficial as you’d hoped. 

 So what is it? 

 It’s being solution-oriented, better known as problem-solving.

 You may be thinking, Kris, that’s a great quality to have. How could it possibly cause such a problem? 

 I get it. As a solution-oriented person myself, I don’t like to waste time blaming others or wallowing in self-pity. If you’re anything like me, you don’t crumble under pressure—you get things done!

 And that is an amazing quality that many people will be drawn to. Including toxic, dependent, leeching, narcissists.

 Are you seeing the problem? 

While problem solving is an amazing quality, hen it comes to relationships, your ‘solution’ focus can actually BE the problem.

 You have a God-given gift of knowing what to do in each situation. And you likely derive joy in helping others solve their problems. But that’s where the true problem comes in—when you find yourself solving the same problems for the same people, and that incredible strength that you once felt so good about now has made you feel used.

 Your relationships aren’t mutually beneficial, and it’s draining the life out of you. 

 Your solution-seeking gift is attracting nothing but problem-oriented people like a magnet. 

 Why? Because, the dynamic works perfectly together. Solution-oriented people don’t feel alive unless they are solving problems, so it makes sense that they would be drawn to people who need help.

And of course the problem-oriented person would be attracted to the solution-seeking person because well, they need solutions.

 But the bigger problem is they only want your solutions in theory. They have no interest in using your divine wisdom to pull themselves out of the rut—they expect you to do that. They have no interest in being responsible for their own success—they’ll rely on you for that.

 And because it’s impossible for you to play that role for long, ultimately you are seen as the problem. Yett because solutions are what you do best, you stay in the trenches until 5, 10, or 20 years go by and you’ve wasted your precious gift on someone who squandered it. 

 At this point, you’re probably wondering if you’ve got to squash your solution superpower. The answer is, absolutely not! We need you problem solvers. 

 But if you do want to flourish in mutually beneficial relationships, you are going to want to harness that strength of yours.

 Here’s how: 

  1. Assess the problem: If you’ve determined that the people in your life have a problem for every solution, it may be time to stop casting your pearls before pigs (Matthew 7:6). 
  2. Assess the person. Your solution super power may be ready to aid every needy victim who manipulates you for help but before you offer your gift, examine the fruit. If it’s someone you’ve had history with and they’ve shown no fruit from previous solutions
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Difficult Relationships - Christian Wisdom for Life's Toughest TiesBy Kris Reece Ministries

  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9

4.9

176 ratings


More shows like Difficult Relationships - Christian Wisdom for Life's Toughest Ties

View all
Focus on Marriage Podcast by Focus on the Family

Focus on Marriage Podcast

1,860 Listeners

The Proverbs 31 Ministries Podcast by The Proverbs 31 Ministries Podcast

The Proverbs 31 Ministries Podcast

4,795 Listeners

Betrayal Trauma Recovery by Anne Blythe, M.Ed.

Betrayal Trauma Recovery

1,400 Listeners

The Nothing Is Wasted Podcast by That Sounds Fun Network

The Nothing Is Wasted Podcast

1,060 Listeners

Flying Free by Natalie Hoffman

Flying Free

1,042 Listeners

Made For This with Jennie Allen by Made For This with Jennie Allen

Made For This with Jennie Allen

6,585 Listeners

The Boundaries.me Podcast by Dr. Henry Cloud

The Boundaries.me Podcast

855 Listeners

The Toxic Relationship Detox by Amen Kaur

The Toxic Relationship Detox

107 Listeners

No Visible Bruises by Caroline Strawson

No Visible Bruises

518 Listeners

Breaking Free from Narcissistic Abuse by Kerry McAvoy, Ph.D.

Breaking Free from Narcissistic Abuse

252 Listeners

The Best of You by Dr. Alison Cook

The Best of You

785 Listeners

Surviving Narcissism with Dr. Les Carter by Dr. Les Carter

Surviving Narcissism with Dr. Les Carter

519 Listeners

Therapy and Theology by Lysa TerKeurst

Therapy and Theology

1,895 Listeners

Crazy Little Thing Called Marriage by Focus on the Family

Crazy Little Thing Called Marriage

36 Listeners