A week and a day ago I had a procedure to remove a medical device. I have learned that it is called an operation if they put you to sleep, and a procedure if they give you needles to "freeze" the area so they can "operate" while you are awake! Anyway, I am mostly recovered from my procedure, then my wife has an operation to remove her gall bladder last Monday. So I am home to try to manage the house letting my wife rest.
Wednesday we were awakened by our three year old, Benjamin, in our bed mumbling something crazy. Dawn, my wife, informs me that he has a fever; thus the mumbling something crazy. Trying to keep up with the "letting my dear wife rest thing," I get the Motrin for fever. There, our early morning glitch solved.
A little later Luke, our eight year old, is checking the trash cans as part of his chores. Dawn calls to me from the hallway, "Luke just threw up on the bathroom floor." Too bad he was so close to the toilet and had to get it on the floor. Now someone has to clean the floor. I guess I forgot to mention that I had been holding Caleb, our eight month old, for two hours by this time. So Caleb goes to Abby, our twelve year old, while I mop up the bathroom floor.
Sick time at our house usually translates into movie time because you cannot go outside or anything else. Down on the couch, Benjamin is moaning about his stomach, then he erupts. He was holding a bucket in his hands mind you. I guess because he is three, I end up changing his shirt and shorts, then I have to scrub the couch too.
Grace, our five year old, is talking about her stomach hurting now, but after mentioning that sick kids do not get to go to the special kid's event at church today she zips her lips. After thirty minutes at the church event she comes home with puke decorating her shirt, arms, and face. Apparently her stomach did hurt earlier.
Our TV room looks more like a campsite now, but the kids are all in bed. Hey, I am no slouch though. I did manage to get lunch and dinner. OK, half the kids did not eat since they are sick. But taking care of half and feeding half should count for something, plus my wife still got to rest more than normal. Point is....... we survived the day! In fact I am even laughing some as I write all this out. I have read many times that it is important to keep your humor. Thank you God for the blessing of humor.
Wednesday, 27 June 2007
The Four Essentials of Relationship- Emotional part 2
Love is a great motivator. We read in the Bible where even God, motivated by love, sent Jesus to earth. Jesus on earth, because of His love for humanity, surrenders to God’s plan of dying on the cross for sins that we were guilty of. John 3:16 has been probably one of the most familiar verses ever. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should never parish, but have everlasting life.” Even God is motivated by love.
LOVE MOTIVATES
We know that love is a feeling, but we also realize it as a choice. If we are honest we would admit that the feelings of love fluctuate some along the way, but our choice to love someone holds us steady in relationship.
Because of love we choose to act and react certain ways toward the ones we love. I have friends that I love; I give them more of my time than people that I am just friendly with. I have family that I love more than my friends, and I treat them differently as well. Incidentally, I have been told that God gives you friends to apologize for the family He gave you. That is not my experience, but I do have friends that I love as family.
LOVE IN ACTION
Love needs many words to describe how it is to be lived out. It can be labeled as “devotion” to someone which means loyalty. We can use the word “honor” which speaks of respecting another and giving them priority in our life. “Sharing” with others is a sign of love. It is means allowing others the benefits of my belongings. We often think of “hospitality” as having someone over for dinner, but in its broader sense it means being ready and generous in our reception of others. We partner up with those we love being responsible to take care of our responsibilities and allowing others their input as well. That is called living in harmony. In 1 Corinthians 13 of the Bible there is a whole paragraph listed of what love is and is not.
It is easy to be selfish, which is loving ourselves more than others. But again love for others motivates us to think of others first. Because I love my wife I consider her needs over my own, and how I might help create an atmosphere where she can be a success in life. Because I love my family I work at work and I am at home when I am at home. Because I love my children I work to understand what they need me to be while at home, and then plan to fulfill that. I might be tired, but they want to play soccer in the backyard. I might be tired of communicating with other people all day, but they need me to listen. Friends might call and need me for something; how ready am I to respond?
We need each other in so many ways; one way is emotional support. How does being around me build others up? When people have been near me, do they go away feeling belittled or beaten down or discouraged? It is proper at the right time to bring direction or maybe some uncomfortable challenge. Dare I say that any situation can be approached lovingly, so that people would still be sure of our love for them no matter how uncomfortable the situation is that had to be addressed. I don’t mean a pansy approach. I mean a solid approach that tells the truth, but there is never a question of how much we care.
Find other great family helps at: Family Helps
LOVE MOTIVATES
We know that love is a feeling, but we also realize it as a choice. If we are honest we would admit that the feelings of love fluctuate some along the way, but our choice to love someone holds us steady in relationship.
Because of love we choose to act and react certain ways toward the ones we love. I have friends that I love; I give them more of my time than people that I am just friendly with. I have family that I love more than my friends, and I treat them differently as well. Incidentally, I have been told that God gives you friends to apologize for the family He gave you. That is not my experience, but I do have friends that I love as family.
LOVE IN ACTION
Love needs many words to describe how it is to be lived out. It can be labeled as “devotion” to someone which means loyalty. We can use the word “honor” which speaks of respecting another and giving them priority in our life. “Sharing” with others is a sign of love. It is means allowing others the benefits of my belongings. We often think of “hospitality” as having someone over for dinner, but in its broader sense it means being ready and generous in our reception of others. We partner up with those we love being responsible to take care of our responsibilities and allowing others their input as well. That is called living in harmony. In 1 Corinthians 13 of the Bible there is a whole paragraph listed of what love is and is not.
It is easy to be selfish, which is loving ourselves more than others. But again love for others motivates us to think of others first. Because I love my wife I consider her needs over my own, and how I might help create an atmosphere where she can be a success in life. Because I love my family I work at work and I am at home when I am at home. Because I love my children I work to understand what they need me to be while at home, and then plan to fulfill that. I might be tired, but they want to play soccer in the backyard. I might be tired of communicating with other people all day, but they need me to listen. Friends might call and need me for something; how ready am I to respond?
We need each other in so many ways; one way is emotional support. How does being around me build others up? When people have been near me, do they go away feeling belittled or beaten down or discouraged? It is proper at the right time to bring direction or maybe some uncomfortable challenge. Dare I say that any situation can be approached lovingly, so that people would still be sure of our love for them no matter how uncomfortable the situation is that had to be addressed. I don’t mean a pansy approach. I mean a solid approach that tells the truth, but there is never a question of how much we care.
Find other great family helps at: Family Helps
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