Emotional
intimacy in a relationship brings emotional security to our union. This is
hard, but not impossible to attain, even if one or both people never learned to
freely express their emotions. Intimacy requires that each person fully listens
to one another.
Often,
we are so consumed with what we want to say next that we barely listen to the
other person's viewpoint. At times, we see no validity to their issue, so we
ignore them or belittle them. This drives a wedge between us and prevents
intimacy.
We
often spend more time on our phone or social media than we do with each other.
We lack respect for each other's perspective, and we consider one another an interruption
or irritation. We are consumed with our own pursuits, and overlook each other.
A
good habit to develop that will prevent this from happening in our family is to
sit down together in the quiet of the end of the day, turn off the TV and phones,
and sit together in the living room. Gaze into each other's eyes as they talk,
take note of each other's body language, and listen as you take turns sharing
about your day.
We
can prevent our self from making judgmental criticisms, berating one another,
or dismissing each other's concerns as silly fears or stereotypical behavior.
We show that we care about each other's struggles, concerns, stresses and
hardships.
We
can help each other carry our burdens, and pray for one another. We nurture one
another by actively listening and taking each other seriously. We take time together
and assure each other of our love, and our joy that we are partners in life.
Prayer:
Father
God, please teach us to give each other nurturing affection, loving eye
contact, listening ears, and true concern for one another's burdens. We want to
dwell together in unity in body, soul and spirit - understanding one another
and giving each other honor and attention (1 Peter 3:7). Remind us to
compliment and affirm one another by sharing positive traits that we see in
each other.
Remind
us too, that You gave us to one another to support, to affirm, and to share our
strengths to make a better relationship and a deeper unity. Help us to show
each other every day that we are vitally important to one another - by doing
the little things for each other that make such a huge difference, and by helping
to carry each other's burdens.
Thought
for the Day:
Some
personalities cut to the chase and leave out all the details of an incident -
just reporting on the main facts; while others want to understand the details
and resent getting the abridged edition of our day; listening to one another,
validating each one's concerns, and joining forces to pray about or to discern
God's plans in each situation will do much to make our relationships stronger.
