It’s Father’s Day and I can’t think of anything mushy to write in the card I bought for my husband. My kids are four and two years old, so they probably aren’t going to speak the prolific words of appreciation and love he needs to hear. In fact, they just scribbled all over the card, so it’s definitely up to me.
Why is it so hard sometimes to muster up some encouragement for him? Is it maybe because I don’t think he deserves it? I’m reminded of the verse in Ephesians that reads, “The wife must respect her husband,” and I think, “Are you serious, Lord? Do you remember who my husband is? Did you see how he behaved yesterday?
I’m SO much more spiritually obedient than he is! How can I possibly respect a man I don’t respect?” Oh, I wish Paul didn’t use the word “must” in that verse. That makes it sound like a command. And how do other wives make it look so easy? Their husbands all seem so “respectable.” That Proverbs 31 wife is always haunting me, too. Her husband is “greatly respected” and she “treats him generously all her life long.”
I want to be that woman. I want my husband to be greatly respected, and I know it all starts with the respect he receives at home. But how do I change the way I feel? I gave myself an assignment this morning: I made a list of reasons why I respect and love my husband. I had a feeling my list would be short, but I was pleasantly surprised when I had written over twenty reasons!
And I didn’t make a list of the reasons I don’t, but I’m pretty sure I can count them on one hand. Therefore, I resolve (with a BUNCH of help from Christ) to focus on the twenty reasons I respect him and leave his handful of flaws to God. Thank you, Lord, for changing my perspective on my husband (and for giving me something to write in his card)!
Memory Verse:
“However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.”
– Ephesians 5:33 (NIV)
Prayer Prompt:
“Jesus, thank you for my loving husband. I want to encourage and edify him. Help me to see the good in him over the bad. Give me the grace to be the wife you want me to be, especially in the areas of…”
Contributing Writer:
Anonymous
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