Peanut butter is a primary staple in our home. It’s cooked into pancakes, cookies, pies, and anything ele it can be cooked into. It’s eaten by the spoonful, put on all sorts of crackers, and used as a dip for chocolate bars. And, of course, there’s the old favorite – the peanut butter sandwich. The current preference among my children is peanut butter and honey. When my toddler is hungry, his first words typically are, “Pea-butter ‘oney!”
I don’t think of making peanut butter sandwiches as being any special thing. It’s peanut butter and either jelly or honey slapped on a couple of slices of bread and stuck together, right? According to my husband, that’s NOT right! My husband absolutely loves peanut butter. If it has peanut butter in it, he’s sure to like it. Right now he’s in a job that requires a quick lunch – something that doesn’t have to be heated and that he can munch as he works. So, peanut butter is a common choice, especially in the summer months when it’s hard to keep ham and cheese cool, even in the thermal lunch bag! The funny thing is that typically my husband wants to make his own lunch so I don’t have to, but when peanut butter is his choice of sandwich, he nearly insists that I make it!
Now, my husband is great around the kitchen! He can pull ingredients of the shelf and turn them into a fabulous meal. He has made me some of the most incredible sandwiches with ingredients I’d never have dreamed of using! So what’s the big deal about a peanut butter sandwich? Apparently, I smooth it out better or spread it better or proportion it better or something. Whatever the reason, he regularly comments on how good my peanut butter sandwiches are.
To me, that complement seems strange. It’s a simple sandwich, and I don’t think it’s any big deal. But, to my husband who wants it to be given the best presentation possible, it is a huge deal! It’s a big enough deal that he mentions my peanut butter sandwich making abilities regularly. He tells our kids that their mommy makes the best peanut butter sandwiches in the world!
Often when were naturally good at something, someone’s complement about it doesn’t seem to be any big deal. We wonder why in the world they would complement us on that. Isn’t it a natural thing to do? Can’t everyone do it? Guess what? The answer is no! Some things that come naturally to us, other people couldn’t do to save their lives – even something as simple as making a good peanut butter sandwich.
I have gotten in the habit of being very intentional in complementing people when they do something that others don’t have the capability of doing. This accomplishes a couple of purposes. First, it builds up that person. It shows him that there is a fantastic capability he has that greatly impacts the world! It shows her that her work is meaningful and that there are reasons why she seems to be the only one to do it! Secondly, it gives that person a clue as to why no one else seems to be capable of accomplishing a task that he or she sees as so simple. We are all gifted differently, and if we recognize that some of the things that come so easily to us are actually gifts that others don’t have, we’ll be more patient with each other.
I’m also seeking to receive the complements when others give them to me. That can be a hard thing to do, but you know, my husband is really genuine in his complements about my peanut butter sandwiches. It’s a big deal to him, and it’s a little bit of pleasantry in the midst of his horrid job conditions. We don’t know how much of an impact our little talents make to other people. We don’t know how those things that come so easily to us minister to those around us. The Bible says we’re all part of the body of believers. Think about something teeny tiny on your body – an eyelash, even. Think about how it feels when one little lash isn’t doing its job properly – it irritates your eye. Imagine if you didn’t have those lashes – think of how exposed your eye would be. In the same way, those seemingly insignificant strengths and abilities we have make a world of difference in this world around us. So next time someone complements your peanut butter and jelly sandwich making abilities, stand tall with pride and accept that complement!
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