I think that it is pretty awesome how God can give you joy in places you don’t expect. Such Grace is generous beyond measure.
My third child is a teacher to me in ways I am so thankful for.
My first instinct in motherhood is to be the caretaker and protector and guide. The fluffy stuff of relishing the intense and unique beauty of each child doesn’t come as natural to me. I am not the most gentle, by any means. But my love for each of them is deep.
I will tell you the most recent lesson from my third child, my wild one. My untamed and beautiful baby. The one who requires the most redirection (read… the most “no!” “Stop that!” “Please make a different choice here!”). She has ideas that I often cannot anticipate and that require a decent amount of clean up, emotional and otherwise.
I was down on myself for how often I was correcting her and I was worried about her suffering self esteem… and the longterm effects of that (I am a worrier).
I resolved to make a change.
I still had to correct her, but it needed a balanced scale. So, every night we began a ritual of her naming three things she loves about herself and then I would name the three things I love about her.
It has been several months now. Two things have happened. One, I get to remind myself of the greatness of this wonderful and wild baby and carry it with me better. Two, she bounced into my room and woke me up this morning and said, “Mom, good morning! I am your GIFT! God made me special, just for you!”
He sure did. And I am so very thankful!
1 thought on “Love Language: Gift of Love”
Never too late to acknowledge your loved ones love language! As I read and listened to blogs and podcasts this month, I had a profound revelation. My child of 30 years often attempted to make known his love language in subtle (maybe it was me not connecting) ways. It wasn’t til he was near death that, by God’s grace, I shared with him an article about our need for hugs for survival and growth. He wholeheartedly agreed we needed to do this. We would remind each other throughout the day of the number of times we had embraced. I am not necessarily one who shows love by touch, but looking back I know with certainty that my loving God opened a door in my heart that allowed me to not only fill his love bucket but to serve him in ways I would never have imagined! God always gives us what we need when we need it most!