The True Measure of Love

        Observation has told me that for some women the measure of a man is whether he could compete to grace the cover of Gentlemen’s Quarterly.  Other women are less concerned about a man’s fashion sense (as long as he’s well groomed) and more concerned with character. 

        The actions of My Midnight Man [MMM] have never left me in doubt of his devotion—even his pleasure in caring for me.  And at 2:00 a.m. this morning (Tuesday, 22^nd Feb) he was showing me the true level of his servant heart. 

Back-up Glasses

        Yesterday my bifocals went AWOL (Away With Out Leave).  I remember having them on shortly after my shower.  With a towel wrapped turban-style around my head, getting them onto my face required minor adjustments to the towel.  I’d put them on to read the cooking label on a package of pre-fried chicken MMM had purchased for dinner.  He sussed out the instructions with the help of a magnifying glass, which left me being redundant.  So I went back to my office to attend to some business on the computer.  The towel became heavy on my head, so I remember taking it off.  What I don’t remember is when I took off my bifocals--or more importantly, WHERE I put them. 

         I’d only discovered that my bifocals were missing after we’d eaten and John was busy coaching Daughter #2 via a phone call.  These errant spectacles were not in the black case I keep on my desk.  They weren’t near the keyboard.  Nor were they sitting on the monitor stand.  Thus began my quest for the newest pair of glasses I own. 

        I re-traced my steps into the kitchen...not there.  I checked the usual perching spots in our bedroom.   I have a habit of taking them off at the dining table when I eat and laying them at the end.  Table was clear...no glasses of any kind.  I took a rest from searching to watch a little television.

        On a break from studying MMM walked into the lounge.  I expressed my frustration, and my total mystification at the disappearance of my bifocals.  About ten minutes later I see a spot light in the hallway.  MMM has his super-sized torch (flashlight) out and is scouting under the dining table, on the window ledge, all around my office and our bedroom.  Sweeping the beam left and right, he checked under the beds, under the desks, down the side of the cooker and the fridge.  No glasses.

        It was well after midnight when I got into bed.  As I lay there thinking, I remembered I’d gotten into the medicine box which holds various pain killers.  So, I got up to see if I’d dropped them into that box.  Plenty of aspirin, other over-the-counter pain relievers and prescriptions for John’s back.  But no bifocals. 

        MMM came in while I was checking there.  I told him I was giving up and going back to bed.  By now it was after 2:00 a.m. and I told myself that obsessing about it when I should be sleeping was foolish.  While MMM stretched his full height to check the shelves where the medicine boxes are kept, I told him that I was going to go through the kitchen rubbish bin (trash can) later. 

        And so, it was at that point that My Midnight Man most truly followed the Servant example of Jesus.  Instead of washing my feet, MMM donned a pair of rubber gloves and diligently sorted through the refuse in an attempt to find the missing eyewear.  The search was fruitless—although the smell was certainly ripe!  But my mind was alleviated in knowing I had not accidently thrown them into the bin.  I had been distracted enough by a headache! 

        I’m reminded of the woman who lost a silver coin. 

        “Or what woman, having ten [silver] drachmas [each one equal to a day’s wages], if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep in house and look carefully and diligently until she finds it?  And when she has found it, she summons her [women] friends and neighbours, saying ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the silver coin which I had lost.’”  Luke 15:8-9

        The “new” glasses are still missing.  I always keep the old pair of glasses for a back-up.  I’m so glad because I wouldn’t be able to read or do any thing that required close up work. 

        The eyewear must be in the flat.  John and I looking and praying.  In the meantime, I am thankful.  Thankful that I still have two pair of back-up glasses.  I’m thankful that God is God and that I can trust Him.  And I am especially grateful for a husband who serves me so selflessly, just as Jesus would.  MMM constantly proves that the measure of a man is not his clothing, but his actions.  

Serving Jesus, Author of our faith.