Eighteen years ago, one of my friends placed this calligraphied verse at each table setting at her wedding reception.
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Colossians 3:12 – 14
In the years since, I have lived it, not lived it, ignored it, and felt called to it. Life is like that, isn’t it? We set our goals, run our race, stumble, fall, dust off the gravel, then get back up and try to keep going. Life can be hard, and marriage is no exception.
Alicia recently wrote this post about The Art of Saying I’m Sorry, something I can’t read often enough. I’m great at planning beach dates, keeping my marriage interesting, and budgeting our finances, but saying “I’m sorry” hasn’t always been my forte. As I read Alicia’s post, I thought back to the Colossians verse my friend used as her wedding favor. I don’t know that any advice—for marriage, friendship, or life—gets much better than this. Parse it out and think about this recipe:
Have…
- Compassion
- Humility
- Gentleness
- Patience
and
- Bear with each other
- Forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another
- Forgive as the Lord forgave you
Then, to all of this,
- Add love
Wow. Couldn’t all of our relationships benefit from these things?
photo credit: pedrosimoes7
photo credit: sylvar
About the Author:
Kirsetin
Kirsetin is an author and speaker who spends more time on the computer than in the kitchen. She blogs about raising boys, living life, and having fun over at The Hip Mom’s Guide. When she’s not working, she enjoys yoga, playing darts with her boys, and visiting warm places with palm trees.
Kirsetin's Website
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