Role Reversal

CORE PRACTICE #37: Consciously think of your spouse as a valued teammate.

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. —Ephesians 4:11-12

TONY

My work often takes me far from home. Whether I’m away for an NBC football broadcast or a speaking engagement, I usually don’t give a lot of thought to how things are going at home. I know Lauren has everything under control.

It’s only when Lauren goes away and I have to run things at home by myself that I appreciate all the details. It’s the little things, which seem to be never ending, that trip me up. Getting all the kids dressed, fed, and off to school in the mornings; picking them up after school; making sure they finish their homework; getting them to practices or lessons; and then finally tucking them into bed for the night—as any parent knows, the to-do list never ends.

Every time I’m on my own with the kids at home, I’m reminded of how much Lauren has to do just to keep things running smoothly. And that doesn’t include any time for herself!

I think God uses these moments to reinforce to me not only how special Lauren is, but why raising a family is best done together, as teammates. Ironically, when I come home at the end of the day and ask Lauren about her day, she can’t remember many specifics. However, because I’ve occasionally had to fill in for her, I’ve come to realize that all the details are time-consuming and critical.

Not only are our roles different, but mine have also been more public. If society were to assess the significance of my coaching or broadcasting roles compared to Lauren’s, mine would probably be considered more important. However, in terms of value to society, that assessment couldn’t be further from the truth.

God created each of us with specific roles and a specific purpose in mind. Though I realize that the apostle Paul is speaking specifically about spiritual gifts in today’s Scripture, he is reminding the church in Ephesus that God gives each of us the ability to perform certain tasks. But we are each indispensable to the common goal of building up the church, whether we are working at a job site or at home.

How well I know it! Lauren will be traveling again soon, and while I love the time with the kids, they’ve made it clear that I’m nowhere near as competent as Mom when it comes to getting everything done.

Hurry home, sweetheart.

Adventure Application: You are teammates in a common cause, whether it is impacting the world, raising children, or completing some other task God has given you. Spend a few minutes discussing ways you might work together as a team.