I can't believe this is a week, today! I'm trying very hard, and finding that the more conscience I am about how I react to my spouse (trying to be non-negative), the more conscious I am of how I react to others around me. Just a side effect of the Love Dare!
Today's challenge including reacting to tough circumstances in my marriage in a loving way, make a list where I need to add margin to my schedule, and then wrong motivations I needed to release from my life. These are very tough things to do....especially in one day! Thank goodness this is an ongoing process.
Reacting to a tough situation in our marriage at this time would definitely be a financial situation. Going from a good job, to losing it in a depressed economy and working a job I enjoy but that pays next to nothing, and add a school bill on top of it with more time away from home - that has to be one of the toughest things I've done. My spouse, thankfully, is ever supportive of my school, and my job, while joining me in hope and prayer that I'll find a more career oriented job soon, and encouraging me when I get down about my place in life at the moment.
With regard to making a list of where I can add margin to my schedule....I don't know. I feel like I'm always running from here to there on my way to somewhere, and always on the go, and never resting enough. I know that in only 3.5 months, I'll be graduating and moving on to the next chapter of my life, but for now, I don't know how much our schedule can change. We can hold on to our Thursday evening family nights to make sure we don't lose that.
Looking at my motives to identify wrong motives in my marriage or that are affecting my marriage I had to really think hard about this. I'm not perfect, not near it, have never been close enough to see what it looks like, so I know I have motives that are wrong, but as they apply to my marriage I'm not sure. Thats a harder one for me to identify. I would have to say that compared to my husband, I'm selfish. He's one of the most giving people I know, hates to tell me or the girls "no" about anything, and would go into debt to provide for us if necessary, without complaint. I still have my bitter moments about my decreased income and the fact that I have to rely on him so heavily in this area. A tough pill to swallow for me. So perhaps my wishing to reject his support to cling to my tenuous independence, and my selfishness with regard to giving of myself when he gives so much more are areas of wrong motive I need to address in my life. (whew, that was a tough paragraph to write!)
So, on to tomorrow's challenge - Day #7
[Love] believes all things, hopes all things.
—1 Corinthians 13:7
TODAY’S DARE
For today’s dare, get two sheets of paper. On the first one, spend a few minutes writing out positive things about your spouse. Then do the same with negative things on the second sheet. Place both sheets in a secret place for another day. There is a different purpose and plan for each. At some point during the remainder of the day, pick a positive attribute from the first list and thank your spouse for having this characteristic.
I have been looking forward to this one. There are many things to put on the first list, so many positive things about this man that I love. There are things that I would add to the other list, the "negatives", things that annoy or frustrate me, but truly, in comparison, they are small things. I will write my list tomorrow after I pick up my little heart from school and then store them away as it specifies. I'm looking forward to complimenting and thanking my spouse for his positive characteristics.
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