“That dress looks nice on you”
“Let me help you with the dishes”
“Let’s go grab some coffee”
On Saturday, 23 March 2019, the Kristus Aman (KA) Family Life Ministry organised an interactive workshop on The Five Love Languages. Based on the bestselling book by Dr Gary Chapman, the workshop was conducted by the Family Life Ministry team from Assumption Church, Petaling Jaya to a group of 20 participants across different age groups.
According to Dr Gary Chapman, there are five ways that people commonly express and experience love: Words of Affirmation, Acts of Service, Receiving Gifts, Quality Time, Physical Touch. Misunderstandings arise when two parties do not comprehend each other’s love language.
Take the example of a husband whose love language is Acts of Service. He may do chores around the house thinking that his wife will perceive it as an act of love, not knowing that what she values more is Quality Time.
The speakers were quick to dispel the notion that the workshop was just for married couples or those in a relationship. On the contrary, it would also be useful in strengthening relationships between parents and children, friends, siblings, etc.
After a brief introduction into the Five Love Languages, participants were asked to complete a questionnaire to discover their love language profile. Everyone was pleasantly surprised to find that all five love languages were represented by at least one person in the room.
Each session thereafter focused on one of the love languages, giving participants a more in-depth look into understanding their respective love languages.
One of the main concepts presented was the idea of a Love Tank that each person has. This Love Tank needs to be constantly filled up in order for the person to feel appreciated and loved. To fill up this Love Tank, we need to be conscientious and make an effort to show love based on how the other person perceives and receives love.
The workshop concluded with a short testimony session where participants had the opportunity to share their takeaways and personal insights from that day.