Same Mess or "Same Crosses," But New Creation in Christ!

As a kid, we all had chores, and naturally my mom would be on us about them. The worst was when we'd do our own particular chore but, because there were eight other people in the house, it inevitably got undone. My mom would point to whatever it was and say "that is the same pair of shoes as yesterday," or "that is the same coat/dish/toy/towel/game/throw pillow as two hours ago!!!" And, knowing that I'd very honestly put those things away, I'd shout "Well, this is the SAME HOUSE! Did you expect the neighbor's shoes?"

I was defensive because, often, she was accusing us of shirking; Mom thought we left work undone and was upset. But I have to wonder if sometimes her source of exasperation was the fact that we make those same messes over and over. It was the same house, the same people living in it, with the same bad habits. I found myself wondering absurd things, like if she'd be happier if the messes were 'nicer' messes, instead of things she was bored with looking at. Or if they were made by less-annoying people: we were raucous and sloppy, and that never changed. Or were in a less-boring house.

Finding A Couple Brothers

[You meet someone new and find him attractive. You wonder if maybe, just maybe, this might be “The One.” You start to look for any sign of affection in their behavior towards you, and become mildly flirtatious in your own behavior. We’ve all been there! There’s no physical contact, no premature declaration of love, nothing obviously inappropriate in your relationship. It’s innocent, right?
Except that you don’t have to let your physical guard down to let your emotional guard down. Without meaning to, you’ve taken the emotional connection to a level that the relationship is not, and may never be, ready for. More often than not this risks distracting you from where God is calling you in life and may damage your friendship with the person in question. Not only that, but when we see each other as merely a romantic potential rather than as people, we actually deprive each other of our dignity as men and women.
The Bible calls us to ‘Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters’ (Hebrews 13:1), because that’s exactly what we are in Christ. Our primary identity is as sons and daughters of God, meaning that we also need to view each other first and foremost as brothers and sisters in His family.....]

The article continues here: First a Brother, Not a Lover. 

Written a bit ago, yes, but I keep coming back to it as sort of a challenge to myself. Chastity Project is one of my favorite sites, and Ester Rich isn't too bad a writer. In her article, the author emphasizes the importance of understanding and appreciating people as their own, unique individual self, rather than just a potential romantic "other."

Husbands, Love Your Wives

 This is in response to an article, published about a month ago, On biblicalgenderroles.com entitled "Christian Husbands – You don’t pay for the milk when you own the cow!" It wasn't one I particularly loved; in fact, I had to read it by turns, letting myself cool off between cycles of being my gender being called either a 'cow' or 'property.'  Tact is not this author's strong suit, and I can understand why it might be published under the name of the site alone, bereft of claim by author: The women of his neighborhood, Christian and non-affliliated alike, might lynch him for espousing falsely pious views that couldn't have wormed their way into a religious brain without the tender gardening and watering from our dear friend Screwtape.

I don't mean to insinuate that this man is not pious, or that he doesn't love God and his wife, just that these views don't fit within the realm of those loves: They are a contradiction of Love, and I'm sorry because they must strain things for him heavily.