"Love the Ones You're With"

"Love the Ones You're With"

Renee Swope
Director of Proverbs 31 Speaker Team

Key Verse:
Ephesians 5:1, "Be imitators, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love." (NIV)

Devotion:
When you're with the ones you love, do you love the ones you're with? I am embarrassed to admit it, but there are times when I'm with my family but my mind is somewhere else, getting something done!

I realized this one night while we were all watching a movie. It looked like we were spending quality time together as a family. I was there physically, but I was returning phone calls and emails mentally. I glanced at the clock to see how many hours before bedtime, when I could get some work done, and noticed the silhouette of my son's face. I was struck by how grown-up he looked. How quickly ten years had passed! It made me think, it won't be long before he's counting down the hours until I go to bed, so he can instant message or get on the phone with his friends. That's when I recognized the gift of being with the ones I love and loving the ones I'm with, while they're still with me.

Jesus knew His time with the ones He loved was limited. He valued the years He had here and was very intentional about loving each and every person He was with. Jesus didn't see people's requests for His attention or time as interruptions, but welcomed them as invitations.

I have needed to bring this struggle to the Lord and ask Him to help me in this area. Through His Word He has challenged me to slow down and spend more time being with my husband and my children. He has helped me see that they are the most important people in my life, yet I can easily allow my time with them to get crowded out by my need to "do" things.

What about you? How often are you just with the ones you love - no agendas, no errands, no planning - just being? How often do you laugh together, watch movies together or go out for ice cream? Do your children really know you? How well do you know them?

One thing I did to train my mind to cherish the time I have with the ones I love is to look into their faces and remember what they used to look like. That helps me grasp how quickly time passes. Then I imagine a day they may not be here; the day they might live in another state with their own families; the day I will long for them to call and tell me what they have been doing since we last talked. Sometime I even think back to what life was like without them. That jolts my memory and makes me so grateful for the gift God has given me in them.

Our tasks and "to do lists" will always be here. We will never have a day with nothing to do, but the ones we love will not always be with us. Our relationships are our most important investments and, like Jesus, we can make deposits that will last for eternity! My prayer is that you will join me in slowing down to be with the ones you love and loving the ones you are with!

MY Prayer for Today:
Lord, I thank You for the gifts You have given me to love - even when they are hard to love, even when I feel like I don't have time to enjoy them. Help me to slow down and see them through Your eyes. Help me to treasure the time I have with them as the greatest gift I will ever be given. Remind me that the only thing that will last for eternity is my relationship with You and my relationships with others. In Jesus' Name, Amen.