People that like

Early on in my Christian walk someone gave me some advice that has stuck with me. They told me to make sure that I hang out with people that like being married. They wanted that to be such a part of my life that I would shrink back from people who were always complaining about their spouses...even the ones that prefaced their comments with "Don't get me wrong. I love my wife, but..." It is so great to hear people talking about their spouses in ways that almost seem unbelievable. Yes, there are pollyanna people out their (I am one of them) but I know the ones that are so desperately in love with their spouses that they are broken about being unkind to them or neglecting even a modicum of their responsibilities towards them. It is not an obsession, but a level-headed acknowledgement of the gift that they have received from God Himself.

I have since extended that piece of advice to people who love, I mean really love, their children. These are not people who gush over their kids. I tend to get a little nauseated with a whole lot of bragging and gushing over how awesome someone's child is in every conceivable manner. I love hanging around people who want, desperately, to be the best parent they can to their children. Who love their children so much that they look forward to school vacations so that they can build into their lives in a more substantial way than they can when they are in school. People like my wife and others who have a deep, remaining love for their kids.

They are the ones that convict me and show me the new and living way to love the children that God has given me.

They are the ones God uses to, tangibly, show the love that He has for me. Even a dumb kid like me.