A Broken Truck and a Lesson on Love
Meg
Sorry world. I know I’ve been a bit silent as of late. Perhaps I really haven’t had anything to say, or perhaps I haven’t slowed down long enough to truly hear from God. Hmm. Something to think about.
The military life can be a crazy one. Right now my husband and I have been demoted down to one car, which means I’ll be doing a lot of driving out the Air Force base and back everyday. I’ve certainly need a lot of graciousness and patience when it comes to all of this driving. And it doesn’t look like it will be over soon.
It all started yesterday when my husband called me to tell me that there were some serious issues with his New/Used truck. As he talked to me, I found myself having to make a choice. I could take an “I told you so” attitude or a loving attitude. Thankfully I chose the later. I know I would regret it today if I hadn’t.
I’m learning more and more what it takes to be a supportive wife. As I watched my husband last night at home, I could tell he felt down in the dumps. He needed my hugs instead of my criticism. He was feeling sad about the seemingly bad investment we’d made in this truck, so he didn’t need criticism from me on top of it. Instead he needed a warm smile, and encouraging word, and a prayer partner.
I’m sure we’ll have many other such experiences in our married life. The military and life in general will throw us many curve balls. What will matter is how we react to each situation.
On our wedding day the officiating pastor read us some wonderful words from 1 Corinthians 13. I’ve talked about these words before on this blog. Today, as I write this, I felt the urge to once again read through these words that tell us what true, godly love is like.
As I read these verses, there were a few specific phrases that stuck out to me in particular:
Love is patient: I’ll need to be patient as my husband and I share one vehicle. There will be a lot of give-and-take as we share this car.
Love is kind: While it wasn’t my first original desire, I knew God wanted me to respond to the news about our truck with kindness. That was what my husband needed most of all yesterday.
Love always trusts: Just because my husband made a mistake, doesn’t mean he’s lost my trust when it comes to future monetary decisions. In fact, my respect for him only grows as we learn these lessons of life together.
Love always perseveres: We keep on trying, we keep on growing, and we keep on learning each and every day.
Love never fails: My husband cannot lose my love, even when he makes mistakes. (Not that the truck was fully his fault. Don’t think I’m saying that. It was mine as well). Just as God’s love for us never ends, I chose to love my husband each and every day with a never-ending kind of love. This isn’t easy, and I’m not always sure how it’s done. I just know that I have to rely on God each and every day for this kind of love. I can’t do it on my own.
And so we persevere. We move on, and we learn each and every day what it means to be a military wife. Someone who loves God, loves her country, and loves her family.
How have you shown love to your spouse today?
The military life can be a crazy one. Right now my husband and I have been demoted down to one car, which means I’ll be doing a lot of driving out the Air Force base and back everyday. I’ve certainly need a lot of graciousness and patience when it comes to all of this driving. And it doesn’t look like it will be over soon.
It all started yesterday when my husband called me to tell me that there were some serious issues with his New/Used truck. As he talked to me, I found myself having to make a choice. I could take an “I told you so” attitude or a loving attitude. Thankfully I chose the later. I know I would regret it today if I hadn’t.
I’m learning more and more what it takes to be a supportive wife. As I watched my husband last night at home, I could tell he felt down in the dumps. He needed my hugs instead of my criticism. He was feeling sad about the seemingly bad investment we’d made in this truck, so he didn’t need criticism from me on top of it. Instead he needed a warm smile, and encouraging word, and a prayer partner.
I’m sure we’ll have many other such experiences in our married life. The military and life in general will throw us many curve balls. What will matter is how we react to each situation.
On our wedding day the officiating pastor read us some wonderful words from 1 Corinthians 13. I’ve talked about these words before on this blog. Today, as I write this, I felt the urge to once again read through these words that tell us what true, godly love is like.
As I read these verses, there were a few specific phrases that stuck out to me in particular:
Love is patient: I’ll need to be patient as my husband and I share one vehicle. There will be a lot of give-and-take as we share this car.
Love is kind: While it wasn’t my first original desire, I knew God wanted me to respond to the news about our truck with kindness. That was what my husband needed most of all yesterday.
Love always trusts: Just because my husband made a mistake, doesn’t mean he’s lost my trust when it comes to future monetary decisions. In fact, my respect for him only grows as we learn these lessons of life together.
Love always perseveres: We keep on trying, we keep on growing, and we keep on learning each and every day.
Love never fails: My husband cannot lose my love, even when he makes mistakes. (Not that the truck was fully his fault. Don’t think I’m saying that. It was mine as well). Just as God’s love for us never ends, I chose to love my husband each and every day with a never-ending kind of love. This isn’t easy, and I’m not always sure how it’s done. I just know that I have to rely on God each and every day for this kind of love. I can’t do it on my own.
And so we persevere. We move on, and we learn each and every day what it means to be a military wife. Someone who loves God, loves her country, and loves her family.
How have you shown love to your spouse today?