Last week, with it being Thanksgiving and all, I had several different gatherings I could go to. All of them would have been a good and enjoyable use of my time. But I knew that it was going to be stressful to try to do them all. In years past I would have ultimately given in to guilty feelings that tell me I'm bad if I don't do EVERYTHING. But something I'm learning is that #1 sometimes that guilt isn't justified and #2 the side effects of doing EVERYTHING can make me just as 'bad' and often worse than doing only what is doable.
So, this is what happened this year. My husband was out of town this week for work so I knew that we'd be apart for at least 4 days (not something we are accustomed to). So, in an attempt to keep both of us from going nuts, I made a choice to visit family out of town (without him) the weekend before Thanksgiving and stay home from another family thanksgiving the day before he left town (Saturday after Thxgiving). All that really means is that I chose not to do everything this year. And it was a good choice. I missed getting to see some people this year, but my marriage was significantly blessed with the time and I've been in a better place this week because of it.
There are times when we must sacrifice time at home with our family for the greater good. But just the same, there are times to sacrifice things outside of your home for the good of your family. I've heard many people say and even more people live it out that relationships at home will work themselves out if we're doing good for somebody else. For there sake, I pray that is true. Honestly, though, I've yet to see that be the case very often. Neglecting and sometimes abusing our family relationships has a price. And the reward for nurturing and cherishing those relationships is farther reaching down the family tree than we can even see.
Be good to those in your house tonight.
So, this is what happened this year. My husband was out of town this week for work so I knew that we'd be apart for at least 4 days (not something we are accustomed to). So, in an attempt to keep both of us from going nuts, I made a choice to visit family out of town (without him) the weekend before Thanksgiving and stay home from another family thanksgiving the day before he left town (Saturday after Thxgiving). All that really means is that I chose not to do everything this year. And it was a good choice. I missed getting to see some people this year, but my marriage was significantly blessed with the time and I've been in a better place this week because of it.
There are times when we must sacrifice time at home with our family for the greater good. But just the same, there are times to sacrifice things outside of your home for the good of your family. I've heard many people say and even more people live it out that relationships at home will work themselves out if we're doing good for somebody else. For there sake, I pray that is true. Honestly, though, I've yet to see that be the case very often. Neglecting and sometimes abusing our family relationships has a price. And the reward for nurturing and cherishing those relationships is farther reaching down the family tree than we can even see.
Be good to those in your house tonight.
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