Focus on the Family Magazine - June/July 2020
It can be a struggle to raise a family while balancing your work life, social life and relationships. Focus on the Family magazine is here to help! Each complimentary issue delivers fresh, practical Biblical guidance on family and life topics.
It can be a struggle to raise a family while balancing your work life, social life and relationships. Focus on the Family magazine is here to help! Each complimentary issue delivers fresh, practical Biblical guidance on family and life topics.
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COUPLES / DATE YOUR SPOUSE<br />
MEMORY DATES<br />
Over <strong>the</strong> decades, my wife and I have traveled and moved extensively.<br />
The special memories we’ve shared in each locati<strong>on</strong> fade as new memories<br />
replace <strong>the</strong> old. But <strong>on</strong>e way we keep those moments alive is<br />
by sitting down toge<strong>the</strong>r and looking through old photos and talking<br />
about <strong>the</strong>m. Thousands of our memories are tucked deep in our<br />
ph<strong>on</strong>es. We scroll through <strong>the</strong> images <strong>on</strong> our mobile devices toge<strong>the</strong>r<br />
and decide which <strong>on</strong>es we will commit to putting into a photo book.<br />
These “memory dates” help us c<strong>on</strong>nect as we laugh and reminisce.<br />
DANCE<br />
—Tez Brooks<br />
During our first dance <strong>on</strong> our wedding day, we tuned every<strong>on</strong>e out<br />
to <strong>the</strong> point that we forgot <strong>the</strong>y were <strong>the</strong>re. In <strong>the</strong> same way, dancing<br />
now allows us to forget about <strong>the</strong> bills and <strong>the</strong> to-do lists so we<br />
can focus <strong>on</strong> each o<strong>the</strong>r. By doing this, we show that no matter how<br />
hectic life gets, our marriage is <strong>the</strong> most important thing. Whe<strong>the</strong>r<br />
a slow sway or a silly jig, dancing allows us to rec<strong>on</strong>nect and keep<br />
things light. Sometimes life can be so overwhelming, but <strong>on</strong>ce we<br />
dance, our stress begins to fade. The issues remain, but tuning <strong>the</strong>m<br />
out for a short time helps us remember that we will get through <strong>the</strong><br />
tough times toge<strong>the</strong>r.<br />
We hope our girls will <strong>on</strong>e day take time to dance with <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
spouses amid <strong>the</strong>ir busy lives—because <strong>the</strong>y saw Mommy and<br />
Daddy take a twirl.<br />
—Amber Stevens<br />
LISTEN NOW!<br />
You’re busy, and so is your spouse.<br />
Listen to our broadcast with Mark<br />
and Susan Merrill for more great<br />
ideas <strong>on</strong> how you can c<strong>on</strong>nect<br />
amid <strong>the</strong> busyness of life.<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>Focus</str<strong>on</strong>g>OnThe<strong>Family</strong>.ca/Radio<br />
TO-DO LIST<br />
CONNECTIONS<br />
For years, we attacked our to-do list with<br />
a divide-and-c<strong>on</strong>quer mentality: “I’ll<br />
tackle bath time while you handle <strong>the</strong><br />
dishes.” We planned to finish <strong>the</strong> list<br />
early so we would have time to unwind<br />
later. It never worked out that way.<br />
We discovered that working <strong>on</strong> each<br />
item <strong>on</strong> our list is a great way to c<strong>on</strong>nect<br />
and increase <strong>the</strong> time we spend toge<strong>the</strong>r.<br />
My wife and I have had some of our<br />
most meaningful discussi<strong>on</strong>s while folding<br />
laundry or doing <strong>the</strong> dishes toge<strong>the</strong>r.<br />
I’m not a str<strong>on</strong>g multitasker, but even I<br />
can handle talking about my week while<br />
we bundle socks, discussing how old our<br />
parents are getting or what things our<br />
kids broke this week.<br />
I’ve found three added b<strong>on</strong>uses to our<br />
to-do list tandem approach. The first <strong>on</strong>e<br />
is that our kids rarely interrupt our c<strong>on</strong>versati<strong>on</strong>s.<br />
When <strong>the</strong> kids walk in and<br />
find Mom and Dad folding laundry, <strong>the</strong>y<br />
turn around and walk out because <strong>the</strong>y<br />
d<strong>on</strong>’t want to help. The sec<strong>on</strong>d <strong>on</strong>e is that<br />
my wife and I talk almost every day, since<br />
we need to do laundry and wash dishes<br />
regularly. The third b<strong>on</strong>us is that my wife<br />
thinks it’s romantic when I help her fold<br />
laundry or do <strong>the</strong> dishes. Who needs a<br />
candlelit dinner when you have a laundry<br />
basket of underwear to fold?<br />
—J<strong>on</strong> Reynard<br />
ISTOCK.COM / MOYO STUDIO<br />
18<br />
FOCUS ON THE FAMILY<br />
<strong>June</strong> / <strong>July</strong> <strong>2020</strong>
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