The Game Plan

I meant to post this right after my last one, to go along with gentleness, but time got away from me! As usual! Anyway, I thought I would still post it to give you all an idea of what I meant when I suggested we develop a gentleness "game plan" to help us maintain this fruit in our lives, or at least be more conscious of it.

I touched on this before, but in true confession mode, I admit that I struggle with gentleness at home sometimes. Okay, fairly often. My problem times are when my kids are not cooperating or I feel they are not listening to me, when things are not as tidy or organized as I want them to be around the house, and when I am tired or stressed. It is at these times that I find it especially difficult to be gentle at all. My un-gentle behavior tends to be more language-oriented. When in these situations, I can be gentle physically, but verbally all gentleness tends to go out the window.

So, here is my game plan for avoiding this un-gentle behavior/language and to focus my attention and attitude on gentleness in these situations. (1) I will watch for the beginnings of impatience, that feeling of the blood pressure rising. (2) If I can, I will walk away, even if it's only for a moment. If I can't walk away, then I will jump to step 3 right where I am. (3) I will pray immediately for gentleness and a quiet spirit/heart, reciting scripture (whatever comes to mind) if I can. (4) I will take a deep breath (or 10) to calm myself mentally and physically. (5) I will keep my mouth shut! If I must speak, I will focus on keeping it short and quiet, watching my tone. This one will require another dose of that quick prayer I mentioned in step 3!

So, there you have it. I hope this can inspire some thoughts and a "game plan" for you too. If you do come up with one, please share!