Keeping the Home Fires Burning

Life rarely follows a strict schedule, but most of the time, if we're lucky, our work lives do. Of course, those who work at Bible Camps are not included in that group of lucky ones. My Hunky Husband, as you know if you've been here for very long, is the Director of Maintenance at a Bible camp. We also live on site, which makes for an interesting lifestyle, to say the least- but that's a whole other post.

Many of you ladies (and maybe gentlemen) out there have the same trouble I do- when is your beloved coming home? You have no idea. Some nights, it'll be 4:30 pm (very, very rarely). Some nights, like tonight, it's more like... 12:39 am. Exactly 12:39 am, to be precise.

How do you deal?

Here are a three things I've learned over the past few months.

Source

1. Have a life. 
One thing I've struggled with these past few months is that without my husband, who happens to be my best friend... well, I get bored! I have much more fun doing anything and everything when he's around. Of course, that also makes it tough when he can't be around. Instead of pining and whining, I've learned to make it a point to have a plan for the evenings when he can't get home. I cut out quilt squares, call a good friend, clean the seals on the refrigerator door (yes, that), do a workout DVD, give myself a pedicure... as long as I stay busy with something that I want to do, I find that the time we're apart goes more quickly, and I'm in a much better mood when he does get home.

2. Understand the mission. 
Zeke isn't really a maintenance guy. Okay, he is a maintenance guy, but that's just one small part of his job. He's really a missionary- serving others for the glory of God. Keeping that mission in the forefront gives me a much healthier frame of mind toward the times when he does have to work late hours. That mission is going to be different in different situations. A computer tech working in the secular world will have a much different mission than a pastor, but it's a mission just the same. We want our husbands to be men of integrity who show the people around them what the love of Jesus looks like, whether it's "technically" a ministry position or not. 

3. Practice an attitude of service. 
When my Hunky Husband comes home after a long day, I know that he'll be tired. Sometimes he's crabby or disappointed. Sometimes he hasn't eaten all day. Most of the time, he's sore. Keeping those things in mind, I like to try to meet those needs in advance- by doing something nice for him, taking care of a task that's usually something he'd have to do, and having some kind of quick and easy food in the house. When I do something to make Zeke's life a little easier, it works into #2- my attitude becomes that I'm a part of that same mission, part of the team.

What do you do to keep the home fires burning?