Think Differently I

“Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting for those who belong to the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly” Col.3:18-19 [emphasis added]

#2. Think differently. The second thing you need to do to simplify your life is to think differently. Imagine you have a long and complex ten-step process that you want to shorten to a simple four-step process and achieve the same result. The thinking that produced the ten-step process needs to change in order to produce the four-step process. If you keep thinking the same way, you cannot get anything better. To simplify the process, you need to think differently. So you need to ask what can be improved and how? Even the mother in the house has a ten-step process to a pot of stew. If you want to be efficient, you need to think through and think differently, to shorten the steps.

Look at your tasks and ask, “what can be improved?” Look at every area of your life and ask, “what is that one thing that can bring about a dramatic change?” In your job, your marriage, or your relationships, what is that one thing that can bring about a dramatic change? Then focus and acquire the skills that you need to achieve that one thing. Take marriage for instance; the one thing that a husband needs most from his wife is respect. I hear stories from different couples but it is the same thing. The man insists that the woman does not respect him and the woman insists that the man has self-esteem issues.

What is the one thing that if you do to your wife, it will change the game? Love, but beyond that she wants to feel loved. The man claims the woman is insatiable because he is doing his best. That is not always the case. The one thing is to love her and make her feel loved right? Focus on that one thing and make it your all-consuming passion. Simplify your life – love only one woman.

A lot of men are not very ardent at loving their wives because they are like the farmer’s dog, chasing different rabbits and not catching any. But if you make loving her your focus, you will begin to ask questions because she will become the object of your study and analysis. I have studied my wife and I completely understand her body language. I may ignore it but I know what it means. Make your wife your object of obsession.

Prayer: Lord, help me through my relationships and focus on the one thing that will bring about a dramatic change for Your glory, in Jesus Name.