Got some good news last night, after posting my love dare results for day #1. Karen pondered my efforts for the day and said, "You weren't that bad." I take some comfort in that, though I suppose I should probably set my sights just a bit higher than being "not that bad!"
But how can I show love on days like today, when we hardly even see each other? We crossed paths at 6:10 am and again at supper time, but that was about it. But I figured out that I don't need Karen's presence in order to fulfill Galatians 5:13, which says, "through love, serve one another," or to carry out dare #2 of The Love Dare, which asks us to "be kind to one another" (Ephesians 4:32), kindness being defined as 'an act which creates a blessing.'
So, here's what I did in order to give Karen a blessing. It's a treat for Karen when she can come home from work and not be able to tell what everybody had for lunch (dirty dishes, etc.). So before I returned to work from lunch, I washed and dried all the dishes and left the counter clean and the dish rack empty. 'Acts of service' is one of her love languages, and it worked! She met me at the door at supper time with a smile, a hug, an emphatic 'thank you,' and a grade of 'A+' for the day! "A+' is a lot better than "not that bad!" For one thing, the 'A+' was delivered via hug! Did I mention that I got an 'A+'?
But I even pushed this love dare out beyond Karen today. If I'm going to genuinely love people, I have to keep fighting my introverted desire to isolate myself in my own world. So I took the initiative, this morning, to show interest in a young man who is part of my workout class. In between various forms of torture, I got to hear a bit about his life and interests. He's a real likeable guy who's probably not a whole lot different than I was at his age. By the end of class, he was encouraging me in the middle of our 'superman' exercise, and I can tell you, I needed all the encouragement I could get! Then, on the way home, having driven the car my son usually drives, I swung down to Hy-Vee and filled his gas tank. Might as well have my money involved in this love dare as well.
But how can I show love on days like today, when we hardly even see each other? We crossed paths at 6:10 am and again at supper time, but that was about it. But I figured out that I don't need Karen's presence in order to fulfill Galatians 5:13, which says, "through love, serve one another," or to carry out dare #2 of The Love Dare, which asks us to "be kind to one another" (Ephesians 4:32), kindness being defined as 'an act which creates a blessing.'
So, here's what I did in order to give Karen a blessing. It's a treat for Karen when she can come home from work and not be able to tell what everybody had for lunch (dirty dishes, etc.). So before I returned to work from lunch, I washed and dried all the dishes and left the counter clean and the dish rack empty. 'Acts of service' is one of her love languages, and it worked! She met me at the door at supper time with a smile, a hug, an emphatic 'thank you,' and a grade of 'A+' for the day! "A+' is a lot better than "not that bad!" For one thing, the 'A+' was delivered via hug! Did I mention that I got an 'A+'?But I even pushed this love dare out beyond Karen today. If I'm going to genuinely love people, I have to keep fighting my introverted desire to isolate myself in my own world. So I took the initiative, this morning, to show interest in a young man who is part of my workout class. In between various forms of torture, I got to hear a bit about his life and interests. He's a real likeable guy who's probably not a whole lot different than I was at his age. By the end of class, he was encouraging me in the middle of our 'superman' exercise, and I can tell you, I needed all the encouragement I could get! Then, on the way home, having driven the car my son usually drives, I swung down to Hy-Vee and filled his gas tank. Might as well have my money involved in this love dare as well.
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