Devotional: One Thing

 "Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war will break out against me, even then I will be confident. One thing that I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple." 

Psalm 27:4

 The Message version reads:

"I'm asking for one thing, only one thing:

to live with Him in His house the whole day long.

I'll contemplate His beauty; I'll study at his feet.

that's the only quiet secure place in a noisy world,

the perfect getaway, far from the buzz of traffic.

God holds me head and shoulders above all who try to pull me down.

I'm headed for His place to offer anthems that will raise the roof!

Already I'm singing God-songs; I'm making music to God."

POINT TO PONDER: 

(see the TIP below) Would you try one conversation this week starting with "I wonder if.."? 

PRAYER: 

"Dear Heavenly Father, as I try to pay more attention to what I'm saying and how I say things to my family this week, please help me to take the time to sit and contemplate you; praise you; gaze on the beauty of your holiness; make music in my heart to you. Help this be my one thing that from which everything else flows. In Jesus name, thank you. Amen!"

Tip of the week: Talk with, rather than to your child or loved one.

Is there a persistent cause of tension between you and your children or another family member? 

Maybe it's sibling conflict, or mealtime manners, or tidying bedrooms, or homework, or putting shoes on, or problems at school which results in frequent arguments, meltdowns or refusal to follow through what they've been asked to do. 

There is likely to be more success solving these issues if you have ‘side by side’ chats whilst doing a fun activity together, where our children or loved one know they aren’t being ‘told off’ and where we express curiosity about the issue rather than judgement. 

Try using the phrase ‘I wonder’ followed by a short description of the problem.

One example (said gently) was: ‘I wonder why you felt the need to persuade another girl in school to give you money for picking blackberries for her’ resulted in the answer: ‘I am afraid that Daddy will lose his job so I wanted money’. This enabled an opportunity to speak to a fearful heart and created a moment of opportunity for healing, which we wouldn’t have happened if he had been simply told ‘that was wrong’.  

Children still need clear boundaries but getting alongside them in this way builds the relationship, increases trust, and helps children to learn and grow. 

So this week, try to set aside a little time to talk with your loved one - and we can all share together how it went either on the Wednesday coaching or on the Sensory Health Community chat group.