How to Develop a Relationship: The Intimacy Ladder

Trust is the most important key to a relationship. Building trust is not the absence of mistakes, but learning how to clean up a mess. In order for relationships to go well, you need to be intentional and proactive. A lot of young people want relationships to happen organically, they want things to just happen. If you have an organic relationship, there’s so much insecurity and uncertainty because you don’t know what’s going to happen.

3 Steps to Restoring Trust After Betrayal

Once punishment is off the table, however, how do we move forward? First, we need to establish that both people in the relationship have the goal of restoration and are ready to do the challenging work of restoring connection and rebuilding trust. If the offending party is not repentant, or the injured party is not willing to forgive, they won’t be able to move toward each other.