I love going back in time, whether it 's through my old journals or blog posts and being reminded of the things that I was learning and grasping. Isn 't it disheartening how easily forgotten some of the big truths discovered throughout our lives are? I was reminded today, in the midsts of diaper changes, meltdowns, playdates and spit-up, of one of the greatest truths I luckily learned earlier on in my marriage. Within 6 months of being a married gal, nearly 6 years together with Ben, I learned the first big lesson of marriage: My first ministry is my marriage and husband. I had to learn that being intentional about spending time with my husband was important for our intimacy, friendship and general kindness to each other. This is still so very
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We were more than excited to have a break from our routine to spend time with family and get the chance to rest – TOGETHER.
One thing I’ve discovered this last year and a half of marriage is that vacations are few and far between when workdays are Saturday nights and Sunday mornings. Sure, we could take a couple weekdays, but when your job produces a “product” that resets every 7 days, there seems to be a sense of anxiety trying to compile a shot list for someone else while you try to take a few days to rest and relax. Not to mention most people we’d love to see or visit on vacation would have to take work off during the week to see us – it complicates things for everyone.
I’ve had the pleasure of working for South Mountain Community Church for 3 and a half years as the Elementary Director and my job taxes not only a physical exhaustion but an emotional exhaustion… and I LOVE it. I feel like I’ve really put some hard work in when I’m drained – call me crazy. I love what I do so I spend a lot of time examining the processes I’ve put in place, asking questions like, “Is this helpful for the kids?” “Does this value my volunteers?” “Does this help us work toward our mission and values?” Vacations are the last thing on my mind until I find myself breaking at the seams and curled up in a ball in the corner. In all honesty, I spend the time I should be recharging thinking of work and what I might …show more content…
It actually produced energy and recharged me and I wanted to be at the forefront of it all. After Ben and I got married, we soon realized that we were way over our heads on the “two becoming one” aspect when it came to schedules, margin and time management. Ben and I dated for 4 years before we got married and served together in high school ministry for a few of those years together. We often heard, through working at a church and serving, the ol’, “We can’t serve anymore; we really need to work on our marriage and spend more time together.” We both secretly judged those people for being lazy and giving a hands-off kind of excuse. Who were we to say anything about anyone else’s marriage? I thought to myself, “You sleep next to each other, you wake up next to each other, how can you spend any more time together?” We simply saw it as the easiest way to get out of a commitment of lock-ins and dealing with 16-year-old’s
We were more than excited to have a break from our routine to spend time with family and get the chance to rest – TOGETHER.
One thing I’ve discovered this last year and a half of marriage is that vacations are few and far between when workdays are Saturday nights and Sunday mornings. Sure, we could take a couple weekdays, but when your job produces a “product” that resets every 7 days, there seems to be a sense of anxiety trying to compile a shot list for someone else while you try to take a few days to rest and relax. Not to mention most people we’d love to see or visit on vacation would have to take work off during the week to see us – it complicates things for everyone.
I’ve had the pleasure of working for South Mountain Community Church for 3 and a half years as the Elementary Director and my job taxes not only a physical exhaustion but an emotional exhaustion… and I LOVE it. I feel like I’ve really put some hard work in when I’m drained – call me crazy. I love what I do so I spend a lot of time examining the processes I’ve put in place, asking questions like, “Is this helpful for the kids?” “Does this value my volunteers?” “Does this help us work toward our mission and values?” Vacations are the last thing on my mind until I find myself breaking at the seams and curled up in a ball in the corner. In all honesty, I spend the time I should be recharging thinking of work and what I might …show more content…
It actually produced energy and recharged me and I wanted to be at the forefront of it all. After Ben and I got married, we soon realized that we were way over our heads on the “two becoming one” aspect when it came to schedules, margin and time management. Ben and I dated for 4 years before we got married and served together in high school ministry for a few of those years together. We often heard, through working at a church and serving, the ol’, “We can’t serve anymore; we really need to work on our marriage and spend more time together.” We both secretly judged those people for being lazy and giving a hands-off kind of excuse. Who were we to say anything about anyone else’s marriage? I thought to myself, “You sleep next to each other, you wake up next to each other, how can you spend any more time together?” We simply saw it as the easiest way to get out of a commitment of lock-ins and dealing with 16-year-old’s