Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Effusivize Your Praise

A pastor was once speaking to a man who was having trouble in his marriage, and he asked him, “When was the last time you told your wife that you loved her?”  The man replied, “I told her at our wedding, twenty-five years ago, and she should know I feel the same until I tell her otherwise.”

This is a funny example of what I think we see in this world all too often.  Most people don’t express appreciation, gratitude, and love enough.  My friend BD used to say that where he grew up, the only time you heard anything from your parents or boss was when you screwed up.  If there was silence, then you could assume that you were doing well.  That’s not how we should live.  We should live in a world where we are being built up, where our good deeds and loveable qualities are recognized and acknowledged, where people take more time gushing about what we did right instead of what we did wrong.

We should be telling our spouses, kids, friends, and family that we love and appreciate them…constantly.  And not just in a passing remark, but gushing about it.  We should effusivize our praise.  The word “effusive” means to “show unrestrained emotion or thankfulness,” and that’s how we should be…unrestrained.

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