Shannon here: Jennifer Slattery shares insight into how God brought her from the brink of divorce to the loving, fun relationship she and her husband share now. Comment or answer the question at the end of the post to enter the drawing for an e-copy of her latest Contemporary Romance, Dancing in the Rain. Deadline: July 14th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Jennifer:
Sometimes love is best displayed in hand soap and red Kool-aid, Like twenty bottles and three gallons worth, respectively. Our daughter finds my husband and I hilarious and has been known to post videos of our pantry to her Instagram story and share jokes with her friends.
“When my mom wants something,” she says, “my dad doesn’t just buy that thing. Oh, no! He buys a case of them. One in every variety.”
She’s not wrong, although … it hasn’t always been this way. In fact, there was a day where our marriage was characterized by fighting, competing, comparing, and withholding. The very thought of showing sacrificial love to one another seemed absurd, dangerous even! Fueled by distrust, false perceptions, past hurts, and manipulation, instead of giving, we strived to get. Instead of sharing, we took. And instead of building a marriage able to withstand a lifetime of moves, changes, and challenges, we tore ours apart one harsh comment, argument, and misunderstanding at a time.
Until the distance between us felt so wide, so cold and immovable, we began planning for the end—the D word.
I’m not sure anything is quite as lonely, feels quite as empty, as living with a stranger who was once your best friend.
One afternoon, with heavy heart, I set to mopping our kitchen floor, maintaining the semblance of a home while ours felt anything but. I prayed while I cleaned, and though I don’t remember my words, I’m certain they centered on all the ways I wanted God to change my husband. Then everything would work great and our marriage would thrive!
But something a preacher said on the radio in that moment stopped my poor-me rant. I’ve long since forgotten his precise words, except for this—His statement that he’d willingly die for his wife.
My typical response from that time would’ve been, “I wish I had a husband like that!” But on that day, the Holy Spirit must’ve grabbed hold of my heart, because all I could think about was how badly I wanted to be the kind of woman my husband would be willing to die for. And I knew, as clearly as if God had shined a light on every one of my past behaviors, that I was not living anywhere near like that type of wife.
And I prayerfully determined to change, embarking on a Christ-led process that was far from quit or easy (while God brought my husband on a similar journey), but one that has paid off in years worth of laughter, celebrations, and vacations. Years of enjoying a love, an intimacy, so beyond anything I’d hoped for on that quiet afternoon, almost twenty-three years ago now, that we first said I do.
About Jennifer: Jennifer Slattery is a writer and international speaker who’s addressed women’s groups, church groups, Bible studies, and other writers across the nation. She’s the author of six contemporary novels maintains a devotional blog found at http://jenniferslatterylivesoutloud.com. She has a passion for helping women discover, embrace, and live out who they are in Christ. As the founder of Wholly Loved Ministries, (http://whollyloved.com) she and her team partner with churches to facilitate events designed to help women rest in their true worth and live with maximum impact. When not writing, reading, or editing, Jennifer loves going on mall dates with her adult daughter and coffee dates with her hilariously fun husband. Learn more & connect: Jennifer’s Facebook or Jennifer’s Instagram
About the book – Dancing in the Rain:
On the verge of college graduation, Loni Parker seeks employment as a music teacher, but no one will hire her since she’s blind. Or so she thinks. To take her mind off her troubles, her roommate invites her to spring retreat at Camp Hope in the gorgeous North Carolina mountains.
Unbeknownst to Loni, Michael Ackerman, the director, is an ex-con responsible for the accident that caused her blindness. When Loni warms up to camp and wants to return as a summer counselor, Michael opposes the idea, which only makes Loni want to prove herself all the more. Though she doesn’t expect to fall for the guy. Still, her need for independence and dream of teaching win out, taking her far away from her beloved Camp Hope . . . and a certain director.
Camp director Michael Ackerman recognizes Lonie instantly and wants to avoid her at all costs. Yet, despite the guilt pushing him from her, a growing attraction draws him to the determined woman. She sees more with her heart than the average person does with his eyes. But her presence also dredges up a long-buried anger toward his alcoholic father that he’d just as soon keep hidden. When circumstances spin out of control, Michael is forced to face a past that may destroy his present.
Can’t wait for the drawing? Get your copy now! Dancing in the Rain – Amazon
Question for Readers: Is there something you have too much of in your pantry? Did you accidentally overstock or is it something you’re afraid of running out of?
have a lot of air freshners since they were on sale I stocked up
Hi, Shelia! I love air fresheners, especially cinnamon and vanilla! What’s your favorite scent? I use the ones that plug in the wall. I also like the scented wax–I forgot what they’re called.
Baking soda. It’s a huge bag, but it was literally free and I couldn’t say no! Now I feel like I’ll never run out…
When I first started couponing, I stocked up majorly on shampoo. Now, about ten years later, I actually still have a couple of bottles from that time stashed under my counter.
I have a huge bag of baking soda, but it was free, so… now I’m not sure if I’m going to ever use it all!
Hey Nichole. Baking soda is great to get rid of odors in laundry. It works if you have a swimming pool and the PH is too low. And if you use lots of hair products and get a build up on your hair that doesn’t wash out. Add baking soda to your shampoo once or twice a month and your hair will be squeaky clean. Just throwing out some ideas to help you out.
I have canned pumpkin and evaporated milk…in case the urge for pumpkin pie hits me! Lol!
That sounds lovely! I need to live near you and get on your quick-invite list!
I’m afraid to run out of band-aides 🙂
Paper towels and toilet paper. If Armageddon comes, I do NOT want to be unprepared. 😉
These comments are cracking me up. I have a huge stash of variations of cream of mushroom soup. My husband, like Jennifer’s brings me every variety there is, if he’s not certain of what I want. Mushroom soup seems to confuse him. I have garlic mushroom, broccoli mushroom, cheese mushroom – all kinds of stuff I’ll never use. But I’m glad he makes sure I have what I need.
On another note, the toilet paper comments made me think of a business I recently went to for service. It’s in an old house and you can tell the house was really stately in it’s day. I had to use the bathroom while I was there. It still had the tub and house fixtures. I’m really not the type who goes snooping behind people’s shower curtains and in medicine cabinets. But the sink was marble. Real marble. I wanted to see what the tub was like, so I pulled back the curtain. It was marble too – surround and all – and entirely full from floor to ceiling of toilet paper.
Toilet paper for some reason I can’t pass up a sale price on TP.