Relationship Strains

Each one of you is to live his wife as himself, and the wife is to respect her husband.

Ephesians 5:33

The story today is about a woman who confesses to her mentor of being overly critical of her husband lately. She explains to her mentor that she has apologized to her husband, but he still seems distant, and their relationship seems strained. She says that she felt like the Holy Spirit was telling her that she needs to accept her husband the way he is, but that it's hard to be quiet when he's constantly glued to the tv watching sports. Her mentor asks her if she's ever tried sitting down with her husband and watching a game with him, just spending some time with him, and showing interest in something that he enjoys. She admits that she hasn't, and agrees to give it a try.

The writer of the devotional goes on to say that every relationship has it's rough patches, and that if your at a point where your struggling, to earnestly seek God's guidance about how to reconnect.

This is the fine dance of being in a marriage. There are things that really bother both husband and wife about each other. When you spend that much time with someone, there are going to be things that get on your nerves. Tomorrow will be my 11th wedding anniversary. I remember that day so well. We were so excited to start our new life together. I have been remembering all month long. Espcially because of the similarities of this year, and the year we got married. We were married on a Friday, the Friday before Memorial day. This year our anniversary is the on the Friday before Memorial day. The year we got married, the month of May was so rainy, and there were lots of tornados. We had an outdoor wedding planned, and it looked like it was going to rain. But it cleared up and was a beautiful evening for a wedding. It was beautiful, and we were blessed. We are still very happily married, but I find myself thinking and sometimes saying to him, (in fact I did say it the other night)"after 11 years, you ought to know me better than that". And by all accounts women are more perceptive of the little things then men are, so I shouldn't expect him to be as perceptive as I am, it can be a bit frustrating.

When I find myself upset with my husband, I try to explain to him how that made me feel, so that he understands more why I am upset about what he did or didn't do. Do I fly off the handle, and let psycho wife in sometimes. Yes. I am ashamed to admit it, but she does make an apperance in my home every now and then.

I used to pray that God would make my husband get it. Then I had a change of attitude, and I started praying for God to change me, and to make me the wife He wants me to be, and I found that as I focused on myself, and making myself a Godly wife, my husband responded more to that, and our relationship grew stronger. I started focusing more on my husband's strength's, and my respect for him grew more also.

Steps of Faith:
Holy God, please help me to treat my loved ones with the same love and respect I would like to receive from them. I know it will help to bridge the distance we sometimes feel between us.

Deeper Walk:
1 Peter 3:1-6 NAS
Godly Living

In the same way, you wives, be submissive to you own husbands so that even if any of them are disobeient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. Your adornment must not be merely external-braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God. For in this way in former times the holy women also, who hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands; just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear.