Monday, February 09, 2009

"... be swift to hear,

slow to speak..." James 1:19b

At dinner tonight we had a problem. Surferman was feeling like he was being ignored. He was trying to talk about the plans for tomorrow. Too much was going on... I was distracted. It wasn't pretty.

Often I complain that Surferman isn't listening. He felt vindicated when a recent hearing test revealed that he does have diminished hearing. One ear is pretty bad and the other isn't far behind. His hearing loss is probably from all those years of working with pneumatic power tools and banging on cars with hammers and such. I also understand that surfing and the cold water in the ear canal can also cause damage. He now likes to tell me that it's not that he's not listening, he's not hearing.

Back to today... I wasn't listening. I got a taste of how I feel when I feel like I'm being ignored. I'm going to purpose to listen better. The encouragement challenge offers an exercise... not speaking for a day unless answering a question... to focus on listening. I think I'll work on speaking less and listening more.

Read more about the 30-Day Husband Encouragement Challenge, and check out Kelli's blog, "Embracing the JOurYney.." as she leads us through it.

Just two rules:
You can't say anything negative about your husband . . . to your husband . . . or to anyone else, about your husband.
Say something that you admire or appreciate about your husband. . . to your husband . . . and to someone else, about your husband!

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