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Practicing Thankfulness in My Marriage

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Women Living Well Blog: Practicing Thankfulness in My Marriage

Women Living Well Blog

Monday, November 10, 2008

Practicing Thankfulness in My Marriage

I started taking piano lessons at the age of 5 and from that age until I was almost 12 I practiced piano nearly everyday. I remember my mom "forcing me" to practice over and over. And so I obeyed - sometimes unwillingly (poor mom - she deserves a gold star!!!) - but I practiced. As a result there are a few songs I have committed to memory and every once in a while I sit at our piano and just go to town on these songs. My children dance around the room and we have great joy together as a family. I've played these songs for so long - my fingers just naturally hit the right notes without any thought or effort.

You know the saying "practice makes perfect" - well I believe this applies to marriage. What are you practicing in your marriage? Have you practiced bitterness, hurt feelings (which is really anger) and discord so long that you just naturally hit these notes or respond this way to every little thing your husband does wrong? Do you find it easy to complain?

If everyday you practice a thankful heart that is merry and joyful you will find hitting the notes of thankfulness easier and easier. It starts by forcing yourself to have a happy heart as Proverbs 15:13 says, "A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit."NIV

Some people may say - "I'm not like you - bubbly and cheerful". And though I am FAR FAR FAR FAR from perfect I can say that "practice makes perfect" and God has been forcing me to practice thankfulness through difficult circumstances in my own marriage. For the last 2 years my husband has traveled extensively for his work. This has brought some unique challenges into our marriage but it has also made me extremely thankful when he is home to just have him there!!!


After Elizabeth Elliot had been a widow for 13 years her second husband proposed and she said "There is one thing I can give you that no woman on earth can outdo me in, and that's appreciation. The perspective of widowhood had taught me that.
Though marriage is "till death do us part" - there are no guarantees that we will have tomorrow together. Elizabeth Elliot was caught off guard when her young husband was murdered and she was left with a little toddler to raise on her own. Her appreciation and thankful heart was cultivated through this tragedy. So - let it not take a tragedy for us to realize how blessed we are and let's practice a thankful heart and make sure you tell your husband TODAY that you are thankful for him. The joy of the Lord is my strength!

Walk with the King!
Courtney

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4 Comments:

Blogger Kelly said...

Great blog today! I have a long list of troubled marriages I am praying for and one thing I think they could all benefit from is knowing their spouse is thankful for them. I am sending my husband a text message right now to tell him how great I think he is-thanks for the reminder:-)

November 10, 2008 at 9:03 AM  
Blogger Courtney (Women Living Well) said...

Awesome! And for those of you out there who have a "rude" husband - here's a quote for you!

"Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude
to you - not because they are nice, but because you are."

November 10, 2008 at 2:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Remember the Golden Rule? Treat others as you want to be treated. It can be so hard to do. Sometimes it is so hard for me to be thankful or express it because I am selfishly thinking..'what about me? I work full time, take care of the house, the bills, errands, food...etc' I know I don't always get the gratitude I would like. But I have found that men need a lot of reassurance and encouragement. When I make the effort to thank my husband for going to work or keeping the yard up, helping w/ the kids etc. All the things we take for granted b/c they are expected of us... he is much more motivated and happy! It usually causes him to be more thankful for the things I do too! I know I tend to fall into a rutt of pointing out the bad instead of focusing on the positive. With my kids I have made a real effort to always commend them on good behavior and cheerfulness, helpfulness, etc and not focus on the negative. We all need it! We others recognize our strenghs and when we do good things we are more motivated to continue. If all we get is nagging and feel unappreciated- we give up!

November 10, 2008 at 2:37 PM  
Blogger Courtney (Women Living Well) said...

Great points Heather - it's so true - we work so hard to build our children up with praise. Our husbands need the same! And it is definately hard to take our eyes off of ourselves and our stress and put them on our husbands to see their stress. That's why it all starts with meeting with Jesus everyday in our quiet time where God can renew our minds so our thoughts are right. Keep it up!

November 10, 2008 at 4:28 PM  

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