Small love

After brushing my teeth, I walk to the bed and start throwing the decorative pillows on the floor. Darby likes to lay his towel out on the bed to dry, and since he goes to bed later than me me, the towel's usually there when I get in bed. Like always, I turn down my half of the covers, scooting his towel to the edge of the bed. But, for some reason, on this night, I am struck by my own selfishness. Couldn't I just hang up the towel?

When we got married, I put a ring on his finger and said "with all that I am and all that I have, I honor you." I often think about that vow in terms of some grand gesture of love, some big sacrifice on my part. And if I'm faced with a situation like that in the future, I hope that I'll rise to the challenge. But I have dozens of chances every day to honor him with "all that I am," and that includes something as simple as taking 2 seconds to hang up his towel instead of kicking it to the side. 

This incident really troubled me, as I got to thinking how often selfishness prevents me from doing good things, even simple good things. How many times have I put off calling a friend I know could use encouragement because I'm "too busy"? How many times have I searched for an excuse not to help someone with an unappealing task? 

When I hear about situations like the recent shooting in Colorado, I feel so helpless. And the truth is, much of life is completely out of my control. But, certain situations are under my control. The absolute least I can do is to choose love in those situations. I might only have a handful of chances to do some grand good deed in my life. But every day, I have the opportunity to practice "small love" towards those around me. I pray that I'll see those opportunities and take advantage of them.