BALLOONS IN THE BED

Spontaneous? A piece of cake for me. But change the directive and watch the fun begin! My husband and I had been working through communication issues for months. So not to repeat previous miscues, I clearly asked, "so baby, what would you like for your birthday?" Even E. F. Hutton stopped dead in his tracks for a response. "Oh, nothing...much." Notice the emphasis on much, though my ears only heard "Oh, nothing." Quite surprised by the answer, I reiterated what I thought I heard and concluded with, "Okay, I guess we'll get you a card."

BUZZZZZZ!! WRONG ANSWER!!...Funny now, not so funny then! When the "big" day came, I handed my husband his card and watched this dejected look invade his face! It was now time for a heart-to-heart with God. As we engaged in "general fellowship," the Father revealed a few things. First, a laid-back demeanor doesn't exempt you from hurt feelings. It also doesn't exempt you from keeping those feelings to yourself for fear of offending the one you love. We needed to learn how to connect without fear of offense. And we needed to learn how to speak a language filled with love, grace and honesty. We listened closely as God gently pointed out past patterns -- the 14th anniversary surprise a few months back that didn't go according to plan; my not getting exactly what I wanted for Christmas; and don't even get me started on the confusing signals I gave my poor husband for my 50th ("No muss, no fuss, no party, no cake!").

We confessed our shortcomings to each other and to God and God forgave us. That simple. So what does this have to do with balloons in the bed? Plenty! Remember, being spontaneous is a piece of cake for me. When I heard, "Oh, nothing," that spontaneity was blocked. But when we met God with our hurts, a floodgate of ideas rushed through my head. As if the dam had broke, the lie had no power! So within 12 hours, I designed a birthday newsletter listing the gifts I wished I could afford, shopped and gift wrapped the perfect outfit for an upcoming wedding he's officiating and blew up a gadzillion balloons (it's good to have an overzealous child willing to test his lung capacity to your air pump!). The balloons ended up where else, but in the bed!