Weekend Kindness
Reaching Others Through Kindness

STRENGTHEN YOUR COMMITMENT TO YOUR MARRIAGE.

Marriage is not a contract. It is a covenant, made before God and witnesses. Marriage is not a fuzzy feeling of love. It is a commitment. It is a commitment to build a godly marriage that is a picture to the world of Christ and His bride. It is a commitment to build a family and raise a godly seed. It won?t always be easy. It?s hard work. But we are committed to the task. We take no notice of difficulties. We are not daunted by problems. We keep on with the task, because we are committed to a vision of building a godly generation. We are not concerned only with the present, but with the future, and the generations to come. We have no thought of quitting because we know that it would affect not only our children now, but also the generations to follow. We keep pressing on toward the goal, pushing through the mountains of difficulties, as we trust in our God.

Got any rivers you think are uncrossible?
Got any mountains you can?t tunnel through?
God specializes in things thought impossible!
He can do what no other can do!

God is for your marriage. He will be with you to make it strong and precious. There may be times when the tide goes out on your marriage. When the tide goes out, you see all the ugly things on the beach. When the tide goes out on your marriage, the ugly things loom large. But don?t despair. Don?t look at the rubbish. Look to the Lord. There is a divine law I want to remind you about. The tide ALWAYS COMES IN AGAIN! If you are going through a tough time, hang on to God. The tide will come in again with love and blessing and reconciliation.

~Nancy Campbell~

Life as a railroad family can be a little hectic. My husband comes and goes with the trains, sometimes staying for as little as 6 1/2 hours before being called away again. And of course, somewhere in there he needs to get some sleep. It is his job that allows me to stay home with the children while also not having to worry too much about personal finances. Children, however, tend to be very concrete. They only know that the train is what takes daddy away. And daddy knows that “I love you” over the phone doesn’t mean as much as wrestling on the couch. While nothing can quite replace that, my husband has found ways to tell the children they are special and that he is thinking of them despite the separation.

Their favorite? Gifts, of course!

These gifts, however, are not generally items that you could find in a store. In fact, it is rare that they have any real material value. A lump of coal or interesting rock found while walking the tracks, a menu from the restaurant he ate breakfast at, a brochure from the hotel, a map, a penny, and a walnut have all become treasured possessions. While they are frequent, they are not quite routine…and my husband does not even necessarily bring something for each child when he does bring something home. Our oldest stores away her treasures, as she calls them, to draw out when she misses her father. The younger ones tend to drag them around until they are worn to nothing or finally lost, which has been the fate of all of the postcards he has sent thus far. So much for the album I was trying to make for them!

These simple gifts do not represent anything of material value. Instead, they demonstrate that their father thinks of them while he is away in a very tangible way. And while they cannot give him a hug every day, they can clasp a walnut, flip a coin or recite the lines off the back of a postcard while they wait for his next phone call.