“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.”
1 Thessalonians 5:11
You’ll often hear me talk about how God putting us in relationship with Him and each other. I talk about walking with God, doing life with each other. I’m also learning how to do life better together.
Doing It Better Together with Kurt
My husband Kurt recently retired. After years of teaching and coaching, after additional years driving truck, he said, “I think I’ve had enough.” He’s now volunteering at our local food banks here in Monroe and Snohomish.
Kurt and I have a very close, very loving, very supportive relationship, but these past many months, I’ve learned more what it’s like to walk with him, not just beside him.
For many years, Kurt did his thing and I did mine, because he had a classroom to go to and I had an office to go to. Our evenings and weekend were important times for reconnections along with calls throughout the day.
Now that Kurt’s home more, we can be together more. We don’t need to just talk about it; we can do it. Together. I’ve often told him how wonderful it is to have the time—together, to have playdates with our grandchildren—together, to go to the store and to walk—together.
I’ve experience it with others too. In the past several months, I’ve had the joy of being part of some very special projects: my first children’s book, a collaborative book with nineteen other authors, a Mother’s Day tea.
So often I’ve found myself doing my own thing in the middle of others. I’ll share support and encouragement. I’ll also get support and encouragement. But it’s not the same as being in it together, if you know what I mean.
Doing It Better Together with My Illustrator
When I connected with the illustrator of my children’s book, I gave him lots of information. He had the story. He had photos of Grandma and my grandson. He knew what look and feel I was going for with the book’s pictures.
And then he got creative, realizing that what I wanted wasn’t going to work, taking the liberty to create characters that better matched the story and my “love letter” to my grandson. Together we were able to craft a more beautiful book, a better story, because we worked together.
Doing It Better Together with Other Authors
Wonderful Morrison got herself together with nineteen of us to write chapters in a book entitled, “She Leads from Within.” When she first asked me to participate, I wasn’t exactly sure what was expected beyond getting my 3000 words written.
And until the release, that’s really all it was: a few “You can do this!” words of encouragement, a few “How exciting!” exclamation points in our conversations, a few “Have you asked…?” suggestions.
And then the release of the book. And then the overwhelm. To be part of something so empowering knocked our socks off. We may have been sitting alone at our desks getting words down on paper, but together we made something big happen.
Doing It Better Together with My Friend
My friend Michol invited me to speak at a community tea, my first speaking gig since before Covid.
Michol and I are good friends. We do online chats well. We do coffee even better. And then she asked me to join forces with her in the blessing of the ladies in her town. Together we arranged for a very special afternoon. We worked together.
Doing It Better Together with God
So often I’ve worshipped and prayed, sought God’s counsel and wisdom, and then gone about my business. So often I’ve given God my notes, my ideas, my suggestions and recommendations, and then waited for a life illustrated as I foresaw it, not allowing God to create something better than I could have imagined, working with me.
It’s that opportunity to share that playdate together, to run those errands together. It’s that time when he creates the illustrations to the story I’ve written, helping me to tell an even better story.
After the launch of my children’s book, I had the hardest time asking for reviews. I needed help and didn’t want to “bother” anyone. Good grief! I had trouble asking a dear friend to an appreciation lunch for the book, because I didn’t want to bother her.
Doing It Better Together in Our Relationships
Relationships are not a bother. They’re about doing, doing together, doing better together. They’re about making it happen, making it happen together, making it happen better together. They’re about celebrating, celebrating together, celebrating better together.
And that’s a blessing to us all! That not only better encourages us, that better builds us up.
Deanna Nowadnick is the author of three books, Fruit of My Spirit, Signs in Life, and Bouquet of Wisdom along with a children’s book, “Grandma, You Found Me!”
