Keeping Peace At Home - Make Time For Your Mate

She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. -

Proverbs 31:27

When you work full-time, ;it is inevitable that someone is going to get shortchanged. There are only so many hours in a day, and it's impossible to please everyone. But your first ministry is to your family, and if you're married, that includes your spouse. In most working families, it's easy for couples get entangled up paying bills, foxing leaky pipes, going to Little League practice. and attending church that they forget about each other. This opens the door for the enemy to come in and have a field day. His MO is to divide and to conquer, and lack of companionship (and intimacy) is a perfect breeding ground for marital discord.

We love our men, but lets face it - men need extra TLC. So it's imperative that we keep the lines of communication open and make time for each other. Earmark once a week or once a month as your date night. Get a sitter for the kids and enjoy a relaxing night out on the town.

When our boys were little, every Friday was our family night. No matter what, that was our day to spend together as a family. In the lean years, my husband and I would take the boys to Burger King or McDonalds (that was all we could afford) and then bowling or to the indoor games arcade (Skee ball was our favorite!) As our income lines grew, we took them to better restaurants. But as they became teenagers they got social lives of their own and had other plans, so what had been family night quickly segued into date night for my husband and me - and it's been ten years and counting!

POWER MOVE

Remind yourself that you work to live, not live to work. You and your mate can build a ife together, but it takes some time. Make sure there is one time per day or one day per week that your other half knows he can get your undivided attention. It doesn't have to be expensive. Pack a romantic picnic for two, pull out a board game, or challenge him to a friendly game bottom line is, spend quality time together. You'll have each other long after the kids are out of the house.

MY CONFESSION

I will thank God for the gift of my mate.