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Joy Skills: Connection that Lasts

January 28, 2022

Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. 1 Peter 3:8 (NLT)

As a dad and a husband, I’ve learned how important it is to connect with my wife and my kids. A busy schedule can easily draw my attention away, but I consciously work at living in each of their worlds. I’m not perfect, but I make the effort to understand their unique challenges and celebrate their wins.

At first, this wasn’t easy. When I worked in emergency rescue, my world included attending to suicide calls, accidents with multiple casualties and victims of brutal violence. Because the daily problems I witnessed seemed so big, I struggled to identify with my wife when she shared the frustrations of her world as a stay-at-home mom, such as trying to teach the kids to pick up after themselves. 

The same is true with each of my kids. When they were little, their schoolyard friend problems seemed so small to me when I was dealing with so much more. But those problems were huge in their world, and rightly so. If I were in their shoes, I would feel no different. It was important for me to really live in each of their worlds so I could see their problems, wins, goals and dreams from their perspectives. 

When we see the world only through our own perspective, it just makes us miserable. We are so much more fulfilled when we see beyond just our own needs and wants. So… learn to live in multiple worlds. Take the time to really understand what others are living with on a daily basis. It’s the key to building a connection that can last through anything.

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