Leave a trail of blessing...

There are certain people in my life who give really good gifts. They're the ones whose gifts I can't wait to open at Christmas and on my birthday. They just seem to get me. The gifts are things I love, want, and need. And then there are the gifts I immediately put in the re-gift pile. Those that might speak more to the giver than the receiver. Those kind that I don't need, aren't my taste, or wouldn't use. So what is the difference here? Do the re-gift givers love me any less? No, I don't think so. Are they intentionally trying to disappoint me? Of course not. I think the answer might be consideration. The ones that give the best gifts are those who know me, and who take the time to consider my wants and needs, my likes and dislikes, my taste and my style. As I was reading in Hebrews 10 this morning, verse 24 jumped off of the page. I love it when that happens. It reads: "and let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works."

In learning to love my neighbor as myself, and lets just face it, everyone is my neighbor, I think verse 24 hits the nail on the head. The word consider speaks volumes. I had a temper tantrum once, oh, and I was a grown woman. My husband failed to notice something I deemed important, and I went off into a verbal melt down. Unfortunately, our grown son was present. In a nutshell he summed up my frustration with this comment, 'pay attention, dad.' And without going into the inappropriateness of the comment in front of my son, his observation was correct. That was all I wanted. Consideration.

The definition of consideration is:

: to think about carefully, (to think of especially with regard to taking some action)

: to take into account

: to regard or treat in an attentive or kindly way (he considered her every wish)

: to gaze on steadily or reflectively

 

Wow, those are some great words. When I consider another, I think about carefully; I take into account their wants, needs wishes, likes, dislikes; I regard them, which means I respect and honor them; I study them and reflect on them. Boy, this could change a lot of relationships! In learning to love as I want to be loved, I really need to spend more time considering those around me. I want to be the kind of person whose gifts others look forward to receiving, but more than that, I want to be stirring up love in those around me, not disappointing the ones I love. Can I just say that I miss the mark more than I hit it? My husband may have missed it that day too, and I think we all do at times because in the flesh, we see through the eyes of self. Sometimes I'm too busy, too pre-occupied, over-worked, over-stressed, operating out of hurt, woundedness, shame, or just plain self-centeredness; but I have a choice in this. And look what the outcome is, to stir up love and good deeds. There is a promise here, when I learn to consider others, my actions might actually have a positive impact on those around me. I just might leave a trail of blessing behind me. And that my friends, sounds a lot better to me than having melt downs, stomping my foot and demanding my rights, and loving only when I think you deserve to be loved. Take time to consider, study, reflect, regard your neighbor as yourself and let's see what happens!