Sign up for our free newsletter:

 2 of 2

"Thank you," she said, smiling. "I appreciate you doing this even though you really didn't want to."

I'm happy to say the spa treatment went off without a hitch. Norma was able to enjoy our son's gift. And I reaped the rewards from controlling my tongue. I knew that being slow to anger would benefit my spouse. What I hadn't foreseen was the personal bonus that stems from not needing to repair wounds inflicted by my hasty words.

All couples deal with day-to-day, petty irritations such as whose turn it is to call the cable company or who gets stuck with the grocery shopping. In the end though, we need to remember the big picture. Rather than squabbling over those mundane tasks, we can put them to better use as opportunities to show love, patience, and a willing spirit to our mate.

Gary Smalley, Ph.D, founder and CEO of the Smalley Relationship Center (www.smalleyonline.com), is author of The DNA of Relationships (Tyndale). Visit him at www.garysmalley.com.

Copyright © 2005 by the author or Christianity Today International/Marriage Partnership magazine. Click here for reprint information on Marriage Partnership.

first page |  2 of 2

				Try 3 Issues of Christianity Today Free! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address Subscribe to Christianity Today and get 3 free trial issues. No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. If you decide you want to keep Christianity Today coming, honor your invoice for just $19.95 and receive nine more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The three trial issues are yours to keep, regardless.

RSS Feed   RSS Help