How Amenable Are You?
I read this in my morning devotion Wednesday:
"Are we out of cheese?" I asked as I searched the small refrigerator at our family's vacation cabin.
"We'll pick some up on the way back from the lake," Dad said.
My sister Sherry wrestled her two-year-old into his swim trunks. "Cheese isn't worth stopping for."
"You mean it's not worth it for you," I said as I sprinkled grated cheddar on my sandwich.
"Are we really that desperate for cheese?" Sherry asked.
It's impossible to know all the ins and outs of a relationship from just a clip, but one thing here stands out. Sherry didn't want to go out of her way to please her sister. She was not being "amenable." This attitude, fairly common today, is probably an outgrowth of the "me generation" thinking that came into being in the 1970 and 1980s. Unfortunately. Because self-absorbed people are not happy. They divorce because they can't get enough "me" stuff and then are unhappy because they are alone and lonely so often. They insist on their own way and then find themselves short of meaningful friendships because, well, others want their views heard.
Happiness does not come from pleasing one's self. It comes from helping and serving and pleasing others. As Jesus said, "Love your neighbor as yourself."* Being amenable is a great way of life, once you get in the habit. You find that other people love to have you around.
Loving God and others--and then myself,
Margaret
* Matthew 22:39 NIV
"Are we out of cheese?" I asked as I searched the small refrigerator at our family's vacation cabin.
"We'll pick some up on the way back from the lake," Dad said.
My sister Sherry wrestled her two-year-old into his swim trunks. "Cheese isn't worth stopping for."
"You mean it's not worth it for you," I said as I sprinkled grated cheddar on my sandwich.
"Are we really that desperate for cheese?" Sherry asked.
It's impossible to know all the ins and outs of a relationship from just a clip, but one thing here stands out. Sherry didn't want to go out of her way to please her sister. She was not being "amenable." This attitude, fairly common today, is probably an outgrowth of the "me generation" thinking that came into being in the 1970 and 1980s. Unfortunately. Because self-absorbed people are not happy. They divorce because they can't get enough "me" stuff and then are unhappy because they are alone and lonely so often. They insist on their own way and then find themselves short of meaningful friendships because, well, others want their views heard.
Happiness does not come from pleasing one's self. It comes from helping and serving and pleasing others. As Jesus said, "Love your neighbor as yourself."* Being amenable is a great way of life, once you get in the habit. You find that other people love to have you around.
Loving God and others--and then myself,
Margaret
* Matthew 22:39 NIV
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