The words of the old saying, “Behind every great man is a great woman” really needs to be reconsidered, especially in my case. The woman in my life is not ‘behind me’ in any way. She is with me every step, and often trail blazes towards our preferred future. If there is any greatness in me, Melissa deserves much of the credit.
Melissa and me are a team. On personality tests we are polar opposites. I am an extrovert while she is an introvert…and that is just the beginning. We communicate differently, we show affection differently, and we watch entirely different tv shows. I watch every documentary on Netflix while she watches “The Voice.”
*Full Disclosure: I don’t watch “The Voice.”
However because she sees and perceives things that I don’t, she helps me forward, and picks me out of ruts I get wedged in to. It was Melissa who urged me to write a book, even though the content was painful. She said my story needed to be told, and that I shouldn’t put it off any longer. Without her support there is no way it would have materialized.
Melissa has made me a better parent. I watch the way she talks to our kids and teaches them throughout the day. She is more concerned with forming their minds and hearts than she is concerned with a spotless kitchen. This kills the OCD in me, but she is right. Her priorities are clear, while mine are skewed. I have learned to relax and even develop patience when I would have lost it in the past. I guess I’m growing.
And she challenges me to be led and to lead by listening to God’s voice. We don’t make major decisions without consulting one another and without prayer. I have jumped the gun in the past, but through her example I now know that ‘waiting’ is a virtue even when my vision and passion tempts me to jump the cue.
There were days I wondered what kind of joke God was playing when he matched us up. Now I realize he was giving me the gift of a true friend and helper to shape me into the man I must become. Thank you Melissa.
Today might be a great idea for you to thank the person in your life that God is using to shape you into something better than you could ever be on your own. Remember, there is no such thing as a self-made man or woman in this world.