Love Dare~Days 7 & 8

I am SOOOOOOOOO sorry that you haven't heard from me in a couple days. Yesterday we had real bad weather and ended up losing power til about midnight last night. Then, I get to work today and we had no internet!!!! So...before I do anything else, I'm going to post Days 7 & 8!

Day 7~"Love believes the best"

"Love believes all things, hopes all things." -1 Cor. 13:7

A few notes from today's reading:

~You categorize your spouse into 2 different rooms: The Appreciation Room and The Depreciation Room.
~Appreciation Room includes things like "honest", "intelligent", "diligent worker", "wonderful cook", "beautiful eyes", etc. THe more time you spend meditating on these positive attributes, the more grateful you are for your mate.
~Depreciation Room includes things like bad habits, hurtful words, and poor decisions.
~Everyone fails and has areas that need growth. Everyone has unresolved issues, hurts, and personal baggage. But we have the tendency to downplay our own negative attributes while putting our spouses's failures under a magnifying glass.
~Love refuses to fill in the unknowns with negative assumptions.
~The only reason you should glance in the door of the Depreciation Room is to know how to pray for your spouse.

Today's Dare:

Get two sheets of paper. On one, list all the positive things about your spouse. On the other, list the negative. Place both sheets in a safe place for another day. At some point, pick one of the positive attributes and thank your spouse for having that characteristic.

To Journal:

~Which list was easier to make?
~What did this reveal about your thoughts?
~What attribute did you thank your spouse for having?
~Were you able to complete today's dare?

Day 8~"Love is not jealous"

"Love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire." -Song of Solomon 8:6

A few notes from today's reading:

~Jealousy is one of the strongest drives known to man.
~There are actually two forms: legitimate jealousy and illegitimate jealousy
~If selfishness rules, any good things happening to only one of you can be a catalyst for envy rather than congratulations.
~A loving husband doesn't mind his wife being better at something, having more fun, or getting more applause.
~A loving wife will be the first to cheer for her man when he wins. She does not compare her weaknesses to his strengths. She throws a celebration, not a pity party.

Today's Dare:

Determine to become your spouse's biggest fan and to reject any thoughts of jealousy. To help you set your heart on your spouse and focus on their acheievements, take yesterday's list of negative attributes and destroy it! Then share with your spouse how glad you are about a success he/she recently enjoyed.

To Journal:

~How hard was it to destroy the list?
~What are some positive experiences that you can celebrate in the life of your mate?
~How can you encourage them toward future successes?
~Were you able to complete today's dare?


Okay, I gotta go run to a friend's house for dinner!! Hopefully we'll be back on track tomorrow :)

believing the best is yet to come,
Tonya