Firefighters face many dangers in doing their job. Dangers related to chemicals are generally detected through observations related to pre-plans, sights and sounds. One way to categorize dangers related to chemicals is the below system.
NFPA 704 Hazardous Materials Marking System.
This system labels containers with placards that identify the hazards. The four types of risk for chemicals identified by the NFPA 704 labeling system are health hazard, fire hazard, reactivity, and specific hazards. Similarly to marriage relationships there are the four areas most likely to cause risk. Dr. John Gottman, renowned marriage researcher has identified those four typical areas of marital conflict as:
Technology
Work Stress
Money
Housework
QUESTIONS
Q: Which of the four areas identified by Gottman is your biggest concern in your marriage?
Q: What is one thing you can you do to address your concern? (Have you ever talked about it with your spouse?)
CALL TO ACTION
Take action this week based on your answers above.
You let someone in front of you in traffic, give a gift to someone special, buy or prepare a meal for someone, send a note or a card, or one of many other actions. Do you expect anything in return? A wave, a thank you, a gift or action in return. Most of us do, which unintentionally changes the dynamics and the very nature of our actions.
When you hear the words unconditional love, what comes to mind? How easy is it to give unconditional love? What is the root of unconditional love?
The word “condition” is described by the dictionary as, “a restricting or modifying factor”. Restricting and love don’t seem to fit together. But it is our nature to be focused on self and to expect reciprocation when we do something for someone else. That expectation changes the power of the action and how it affects everyone.
My grandmother Lucille “shorty” Rivers on the left and two of her sisters, Nell and Lorena. These were some fun, amazing people in my life I learned many lessons about unconditional love from.
I propose to you that unconditional love is the highest level of love. It is given without any restrictions, no conditions, no expectations. That is love in its purest form, giving, selfless, sacrificial.
There was a person who demonstrated unconditional love. He did for others and while expecting nothing in return. He loved others to the point of even laying his life down without any expectations, only hoping that the love would be received. His name was Jesus Christ.
When a husband and wife love each other unconditionally it is this pure love that yields an amazing, lasting marriage.
That is what the fifth chapter of Ephesians was describing as a mystery in verse 32.
While being intentional to love through our words and actions without any expectations is a challenge. The rewards are extraordinary, and the strong relationships are the best of those rewards.
QUESTIONS
Q: How can you focus on the action and your intention not how the person responds?
Q: Why do you allow the response or a lack of an expected response determine how you feel about your actions? We all need some form of validation, but what other ways, even the cross, can provide that?
CALL TO ACTION
Express pure love to your spouse by doing something nice for them this week at least once. Mentally and emotionally expect nothing in return knowing you have expressed love in its purest form with no strings attached.
This principle works with relationships in general, try and see. I must warn you that loving unconditionally is possible but challenging with our selfish nature. Go fan that fire!
FireLighter Sparks 