She swept the floor like a madwoman.

He was gone and his leaving created a big hole. The day before he was gone he seemed annoying. They battled over little things, all day long.

Like that pesky habit he had of sweeping the kitchen floor throughout the day.

All day.

Whisk, whisk.

Right under her feet. The sound grated on her. The nonstop whishing of the broom on the tiles. Why didn’t he go outside? Why was he attacking every stray piece of lint that landed on the linoleum?

I couldn’t know what she was thinking but as she pushed that broom right and left, I wondered . . .

Is this her way of feeling close to him?

Is the very thing that got on her nerves now bringing her comfort?

Not too long ago I listened as a few friends describe their loved one’s quirks. We all have them. We laughed at what drove us a little crazy.

Mine is that my guy sings in the morning.

My eyes are half open and feel like spiders are tiptoeing across my eyeballs. I’m foggy and still in the dream where I’m trying to make a phone call but don’t know how to use the old-school phone.

He springs from the bed.

Singing.

Loudly.

Sometimes he sings just one line at a time, over and over again.

Shut up and dance with me.

She said, ‘Shut up and dance with me.

Yeah, I said, “Shut up and dance with me.

Oh girl, shut up and dance with me.”

Oh, woo-hooo, this woman is my destiny. Shut up and dance with me.

There have been times I’ve called out, “Babe, bring the volume down.”

Or, I’ve teased him (in kind of a passive aggressive way) about how he’s stuck on repeat.

Could you at least sing the whole song?

Before you jump on me and tell me that there are a lot worse things than singing the same line of a pop song over and over again at 6:00 a.m.. . .

I know that.

And that’s my point.

There are a lot of things we get in a wad over that really don’t matter a lot when it’s all said and done. I imagine if I lost my sweet guy tomorrow, I’d be sitting on the edge of the bed wearing one of his shirts singing at the top of my lungs.  .  .

“Shut up and dance with me.”

Wishing with all of my heart that I could hear his off-key singing voice stuck on repeat.

Wishing I hadn’t wasted a thousand mornings being annoyed over something I’d come to miss.

On page 134 of Come With Me, I ask this question:

If you were to live a life of thank-you in your closest relationships, what might that look like? (Get down to the nitty-gritty, the small things. How will you practice this for the next few days?)

Believe me, I asked that question of myself long before I asked it of you.

This is my answer.

I won’t assume I have forever with those closest to me.

That changes the things that get on my nerves, or at least the way I respond to them.

It changes me.

Sometimes we think that following Jesus is to Africa or into sacrificial giving or helping women in impoverished nations, and it can be. For most of us, however it’s found in the small stuff.

Sometimes following Jesus is simply remembering to be grateful.

Lord, let me live a life of thank you. Every day. Let me remember that I won’t have this person in my life forever. I am grateful for your love. For that person. For this mess around my feet that comes from having little people in my home. For life. For breath. For all the little things. 

I will be grateful for the guy who wakes up singing. And let’s get even more real — for the guy who puts up with the foggy, half-lidded not-as-cheerful woman rolled up in the covers next to him.

If you were to live a life of thank-you in your closest relationship, what might that look like?

Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty, the small stuff in this study today. Let’s practice living a life of thank-you with someone we love. Instead of focusing on a quirk or an annoyance, look at the person behind it.

Tell them that you love them.

Wrap your arms around their sweet necks.

Surprise the heck out of them as you tell them that you love that little thing that drives you crazy, because they are the one doing it.

Suzie

Join me on a free conference call tonight as we chat and pray together about this study. I want to hear from you. I want to pray together and ask our Savior to lead us into life transforming faith.

Invite a friend.

The conference call is at 7 p.m. CT. There’s no cost. You can join the event page and we’ll chat on FB while the call is going on. You can ask your questions, or share your thoughts about this book or the study or what God is showing you.

All the details will be on this event page before the call — the number, the fun stuff, and the opportunity to share your questions or thoughts.