A Word Aptly Spoken

We all have household chores that we dislike.  Once upon a time, there was a chore that I despised.  I would avoid it for way too long and dread every minute of attacking the task.  More important than what chore it was that I hated so much, is WHY I hated it.

You see, my husband developed a habit long before we ever met.  This habit, I kid you not, turned a 2 minute job into a 30 minute job.  I tried telling him this many times throughout our marriage.  Or so I thought.

On one particular day, I decided to suck it up.  My duty had been neglected long enough.  It was once again time to tackle my most dreaded chore.  As I worked away, I found myself getting more and more angry.  While telling off my husband and ranting away in my mind, God interrupted my thoughts.  "Why don't you tell him how hard this is?"  I respond, "I have told him tons of times and nothing has changed!"  Then God says, "Have you talked with him or complained to him?" Hmmmm.  So I say, "Fair enough.  But I need you to give me the words to communicate this to him in a way that he won't feel attacked and he will understand my perspective."  The next thing I know, Mark is right there next to me.  He came to see how I was doing because it seemed like it was taking a long time.  It's true!  You know what happened next?  God gave me the words.  Now my most dreaded, despised household chore is no big deal!

We all have relationships that suffer with communication problems from time to time.  Proverbs 25:11 says, "A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in setting of silver".  The thing is, not everyone communicates that same way.  You may think you made your point crystal clear, only to find the other person didn't get a word you said.  I encourage you to ask God to give you the words to communicate effectively, graciously and in love.  Especially in relationships that lack in this area.