Don’t we all dream of a spouse that loves us, cares about our dreams and encourages us to do the things that drive our passions?

I had a family reunion recently. At the end, we had a family devotional. Both of my parents expressed how grateful they were for the other. My father said that he was the person he is today because of my mother.

My mother said that my father has always supported her dreams and ambitions, and gave her “wings to fly.”

My husband, Mike has been very supportive lately, with all the dreams and endeavors I am pursuing. I thank Bruce Springsteen, one of Mike’s favorite songwriters, for penning the lyrics:

“…let me in, I wanna be your friend,
I want to guard your dreams and visions”

I have to say, that Bruce does have some of the most romantic lyrics ever written. I especially love his song, “All That Heaven Will Allow.” If I’m feeling emotional at all, it chokes me up when I listen to it.

I’ve been busy lately, teaching classes, running my online stuff and trying to keep up with our big family and all it’s demands. I forgot to tell my son the location of one of his rehearsals the other day, and he got frustrated and raised his voice at me. I got off the phone and had to cry. My husband walked in, noticed something was wrong, and just put his arm around me.

A few hours later, a package of suspicious shape arrived. I opened it to find some beautiful flowers.

You know what? When my husband treats me like that, it makes me want to go the EXTRA mile and make sure his needs are fulfilled as well.

It’s a two-way street. I’ve supported my husband a lot in the past also.

I think that’s the way the golden rule is supposed to work. This is the foundation of intimacy, because physical attraction is temporary and loses it’s glitter over time. If there isn’t anything more substantial underneath, the relationship can fade fast.

Sometimes we fall into a trap of feeling that we have fallen out of love for our spouse. We start to believe that “love” is only a noun and not a verb. The truth is, love is something we do. We can’t expect it to come our way all the time without giving it ourselves.

The great thing is, when we give it freely, it comes back to us in greater measure over time. I feel so blessed that we have both made the choice to “love” each other, even through the bumpy times.

How do you support/feel supported by your spouse?