I was so excited to be able to go to our church’s Marriage Retreat this past weekend that I might have overdone it a bit. See, I’m normally trapped in my house unable to get in a car due to cripling back pain. But warm weather, plenty of rest and physical therapy, and of course the grace of God, I was able to make the hour long drive with little impact. But what I gained from the event was well worth any additional suffering I am to endure.
I hung out with friends, talked over some new ideas for the website, got the lesson notes transcribed for deployed members, and was able to spend a little quality time with my wife. But all things must eventually end, and no later than Sunday morning during church service did my excursions begin to take a toll. But not wanting to miss anything, I medicaded myself and pushed on.
So now, I’m back in the pain saddle again worse than I was last week before I left. But one thing this weekend has taught me above all… no matter how bad my situation is, there are ALWAYS ways to show my wife I love her. So taking a cue from Doug Lambert’s men’s class, all this week, I’m doing special things for my wife everyday. Things that I am capable of doing. It may be only as small as some encouraging emails, or making coffee. Or it may be something profound such as letting her sleep in one morning while I do everything to get the kids to school.
The point is, ANYONE can make their spouce feel special. You don’t need to open your wallet or go somewhere fancy. Just do little things… A LOT of little things.
For example, my week looks a little like this:
Sunday night: Program selected FREE Halmark e-Cards to be delivered once a day for the rest of the week. Pick out each card and add special messages. This requires a little planning in advance.
Monday: First e_card is sent. Follow up with my special private email to her detailing my love for her SOUND. (A different sense will be covered each day for five days.) Make her morning coffee. Get the kids up. Make their lunches and breakfast. Took short trip to thrift store and got a bunch of clothes that I think she would like and I separated them into five gifts; one for each day. I gave her her first set of semi-new clothes. And finally, lead a special male-only Family Devo on how to encourage mommy this week.
Tuesday: Second e-card is sent. Again, follow up with my private email detailing my love of her SIGHT. Make morning coffee, kids lunches and breakfast. Get her breakfast from Wawa. Give her second set of semi-new clothes.
Anywho, you can see where this is going. Everyday, do something that reminds her of how much you apprciate her. Oh, and for the guys… do NOT expect any ’special’ attention in return. You are not doing this for extra playtime in the bedroom. You are doing this to support her and encourage her. Remind her that this is JUST because you love her and don’t make ANY special flirts or passes at her that might make her think you want something in return. For the girls, if you want to encourage your hubby, then DO make sure to spend extra playtime with him in the bedroom. Guys are VERY physical and the best way to make us feel loved and appreciated is with lots of affection.
Hope you can take some time this week to show your woman/man how much you love her/him!
