He who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be reckoned a curse to him. —Proverbs 27:14
Today's Dare
Ask your spouse to tell you three things that cause him or her to be uncomfortable or irritated with you. You must do so without attacking them or justifying your behavior. This is from their perspective only.
Busy, busy, busy! My husband needed to pick up his boss from the airport this morning, so I said I would take our daughter to school so he wouldn’t have to, he accepted. I had a few things I needed to get done, and I actually got more done than I planned – Thank you God!
Skype’d hubby before he even got into work, to say I hope his day goes well and that it will be very successful. He Skype’d back when he got in, saying everything was good by him and wishing me a great day too.
I expected him to go out with the boss, like they normally do when he is here, but he phoned to say I must pick up both the kids, because they were still busy with meetings and that as soon as that meeting is done he will be coming home! What a surprise.
I picked our daughter up, and then I went to the mall to get her a pretty outfit for tomorrow. Her school is having a competition and the grade R girls are competing for the title of “Miss Cutie Pie”. I almost did not enter her, but thought it will do her self-confidence a world of good. And I was right. She was so excited about the clothes etc. Her school is a school for children with disabilities, many of whom are physical, so it is not a beauty pageant in the sense of who is the prettiest by worldly standards. We then went to pick up my son and by the time we got home, hubby was already there!
We had a fun evening playing dress-up with my daughter, and she put make-up on me, which she enjoyed so much! Then we got everything together for tomorrow. Their pictures are being taken at school and the finalists will be chosen 16 July. My daughter could not even get herself to sleep, she kept asking if she can wear her clothes to school tomorrow! Bless.
We had our family bible reading and prayer time again! It was great! Hubby and I had our own prayer and devotion times as well, and after I asked him about his day. He chatted for quite some time, and I listened. I didn’t ask him about the things I do that irritate him, because he gets irritated when I do that! LOL instead I listened to him, to show him that I think he is important. H mentioned that he was still feeling a bit worse for wear, so I got up to go make him some med-lemon. He asked me where I was going, I told him and then he objected, saying I should get back in bed. But I decided that I was going to do this for him, and he took it when I brought it, playfully scolding me for going “against” him.
When the time comes I will discuss things I might do or say that makes him feel bad. But I will keep praying on this, for God to lead me to the right moment. Talking in general, leads to a better understanding of my husband. I used to be the one doing the talking, but since the Love Dare I have learned to be still and listen. Amazing what I see now, that I never did before.
My scripture:
I praise you, Lord, because you have saved me and kept my enemies from gloating over me. 2 I cried to you for help, O Lord my God, and you healed me; 3 you kept me from the grave. I was on my way to the depths below, but you restored my life. 4 Sing praise to the Lord, all his faithful people! Remember what the Holy One has done, and give him thanks! 5 His anger lasts only a moment, his goodness for a lifetime. Tears may flow in the night, but joy comes in the morning. 6 I felt secure and said to myself, I will never be defeated. 7 You were good to me, Lord; you protected me like a mountain fortress. But then you hid yourself from me, and I was afraid. 8 I called to you, Lord; I begged for your help: 9 What will you gain from my death? What profit from my going to the grave? Are dead people able to praise you? Can they proclaim your unfailing goodness? 10 Hear me, Lord, and be merciful! Help me, Lord!
11 You have changed my sadness into a joyful dance; you have taken away my sorrow and surrounded me with joy. 12 So I will not be silent; I will sing praise to you. Lord, you are my God; I will give you thanks forever.
So I have a question. By not doing the dare, do you feel you took control back? It seems you are doing it on your terms, or the terms of what you think.
No not at all. Round 1 of the Love Dare was really hard for me to do and far too many times did I take back control. Round 2 on the other hand, I feel a lot closer to Christ, and I'm praying for His guidance on everything. He is leading me more now than ever, and I trust that in His time, the opportunity will come for me to raise these questions, but it was not last night. The dare was Love is not Rude, and I think I managed to complete that part, by letting my husband talk, without changing the conversation to focus on me and my shortcomings.
Praise GOD you were able to listen to your husband and make him feel important. I would pray to GOD for the strength and ability to do the dare. It's challenging but helpful to hear what these things are. I think we all have ideas on what we do that are annoying. I knew I had to create the space and environment for my husband to be able to feel safe in sharing this. Did you complete this dare during round 2? I would suggest you go try to complete it because when we don't then it does seem like we are doing things our own way.