Marriage and Family : Marriage and Family Lesson 4
DISCOVERING YOUR PRIMARY LOVE LANGUAGE : DISCOVERING YOUR PRIMARY LOVE LANGUAGE
Five primary love languages : Five primary love languages Love Language #1 Words of Affirmation
Verbal compliments, or words of appreciation, are powerful communicators of love. They are best expressed in simple straightforward statements of affirmation such as:
"You look sharp in that suit."
"Do you ever look nice in that dress! WOW!"
Five primary love languages : Five primary love languages Love Language #2: Quality Time
A central aspect of quality time is togetherness. Two people sitting in the same room are in close proximity, but they are not necessarily together. Togetherness has to do with focused attention.
Quality time does not mean that we have to spend our together moments gazing into each others eyes. It means we are doing something together and we are giving our full attention to the other person.
Five primary love languages : Five primary love languages Love Language #3: Receiving Gifts
Gifts are visual symbols of love. Most wedding ceremonies include the giving and receiving of rings. The person performing the ceremony says, "These rings are outward and visible sings of an inward and spiritual bond that unites your two hearts in love that has no end." That is not meaningless rhetoric. It is verbalizing a significant truth—symbols have emotional value.
Five primary love languages : Five primary love languages Love Language #4: Acts of Service
Such actions as cooking a meal, setting a table, washing dishes, vacuuming, removing the white spots from the mirror, getting bugs off the windshield, taking out the garbage, changing the baby’s diaper, painting a bedroom, dusting the bookcase, keeping the car in operating condition, cleaning the garage, mowing the grass, trimming the shrubs, raking the leaves, walking the dog, and changing the cat’s litter box are all acts of service. They require thought, planning, time, effort, and energy. If done with a positive spirit, they are indeed expressions of love.
Slide 7 : Love Language #5: Physical Touch
Physical touch is also a powerful vehicle for communicating marital love. Holding hands, kissing, embracing, and sexual intercourse are all ways of communicating emotional love to one’s spouse. For some individuals, physical touch is their primary love language. Without it, they feel unloved. With it, their emotional tank is filled, and they secure in the love of their spouse.
Exercise: Discover you primary love language : Exercise: Discover you primary love language Take a moment to answer these questions.
What makes you feel most loved by your spouse? What do you desire above all else? If the answer doesn’t leap to your mind, answer the following questions.
What does your spouse do or fail to do that hurts you most?
What do you most often request, of your spouse?
What do you do or say to regularly express your love for your spouse? Chances are you expressing love in the way that it speaks to you.