by patsy norwood ~ © 2008 -2016 ~ All Rights Reserved
Yesterday we talked about relationships and about how our
relationship with God affects our relationships with our fellow Christians. Today, we’re going to continue this line of
thinking and talk about how our relationship with God affects our husbands.
Ladies, do you realize that how we live before our husbands has an effect on them. It can literally cause them to turn from God or to Him. Here’s a thought. Do you realize that our husbands are constantly watching us? I don’t mean they sit around and literally follow our every move with their eyes, but they do observe us in our responses and actions to everyday life. Who are they seeing in us, God or the fallen one?
I’d like to introduce you to some ladies. I have to tell you before I do though that they are not very good examples of how a Christian wife should act. In fact, they are, shall we say, quite the opposite.
First, we have Mrs. Me Me Molly ...
Just like many of us, Me Me let her light shine and others know she was a follower of Christ. That is until she got so busy with her work and her children’s activities that her light began to dim. Praying took up too much of her time and so did reading her Bible. She even got so busy that you didn’t see her in Bible class or worship services anymore, because, well, a person has to rest some time. Then a very sad thing happened, a sinful creature called jealousy crept into her heart and built a home. The creature grew and grew until it had consumed her heart and Jesus began to slowly fade away. Me Me became obsessed with her appearance. She wanted to wear the best makeup and the latest styles of clothes. When any of her friends got new clothes she had to have a new outfit too even if the family budget couldn’t afford it. Now, Me Me wasn’t only concerned with her looks and what she wore but she was also concerned with what she drove and where she lived as well. Yes, you guessed it, she wanted a new car every two years whether they could afford it or not and her house had to be in the most affluent section of town plus be filled with furnishings that made her the envy of all her friends. As her name implies, it was all about ‘her’ with Mrs. Me Me Molly.
Ladies, do you realize that how we live before our husbands has an effect on them. It can literally cause them to turn from God or to Him. Here’s a thought. Do you realize that our husbands are constantly watching us? I don’t mean they sit around and literally follow our every move with their eyes, but they do observe us in our responses and actions to everyday life. Who are they seeing in us, God or the fallen one?
I’d like to introduce you to some ladies. I have to tell you before I do though that they are not very good examples of how a Christian wife should act. In fact, they are, shall we say, quite the opposite.
First, we have Mrs. Me Me Molly ...
Just like many of us, Me Me let her light shine and others know she was a follower of Christ. That is until she got so busy with her work and her children’s activities that her light began to dim. Praying took up too much of her time and so did reading her Bible. She even got so busy that you didn’t see her in Bible class or worship services anymore, because, well, a person has to rest some time. Then a very sad thing happened, a sinful creature called jealousy crept into her heart and built a home. The creature grew and grew until it had consumed her heart and Jesus began to slowly fade away. Me Me became obsessed with her appearance. She wanted to wear the best makeup and the latest styles of clothes. When any of her friends got new clothes she had to have a new outfit too even if the family budget couldn’t afford it. Now, Me Me wasn’t only concerned with her looks and what she wore but she was also concerned with what she drove and where she lived as well. Yes, you guessed it, she wanted a new car every two years whether they could afford it or not and her house had to be in the most affluent section of town plus be filled with furnishings that made her the envy of all her friends. As her name implies, it was all about ‘her’ with Mrs. Me Me Molly.
Then,
we have Mrs. Betty Busybody ...
As her name implies Betty Busy Body was busy. If anybody wanted to know anything they knew exactly where to go. Betty Busy Body knew everything about everybody and was more than willing to share her knowledge. Gossiping was her specialty, oh, but that’s not what she called it. In her opinion she was just being friendly, and after all everyone would find out sooner or later any way. I Peter 4:15 would have been a good verse for Mrs. Betty Busybody to read and obey. It says “But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evil doer, or as a busybody in other peoples’ matters.”
Next, is Mrs. Lazy Lucy …
Mrs. Lazy Lucy never quite gets around to doing the things she knows she should, there really is no reason other than she just doesn’t want to. Her home is always a mess because she really needs to sleep in every morning with her not being a morning person and all and as for the afternoons well… she just couldn’t miss the next episodes of her soap operas. Her poor husband and children just kind of fend for themselves when it comes to meals and clean clothes. Lazy Lucy just never seems to get around to those ‘domestic’ chores. What about church, well it just takes too much effort. It’s easier to just stay at home … but she’s convinced she’ll be more in the mood to go … next week.
Last, we have Mrs. I Can Do It Myself or better known as Mrs. I am Woman! ...
The old song “I am Woman by Linda Ronstad sums up Mrs. I Can Do It Myself’s attitude well. She is a women’s libber through and through. She doesn’t need anyone to do anything for her, most especially her husband. She can “bring home the bacon and fry it up in a pan” as the song goes. She is a one-woman show? Mrs. I Can Do It Myself has forgotten something though. She’s forgotten about God’s plan for man and woman. She’s forgotten that each has a God assigned role and that each brings their own gifts to the marriage. The following dialogue between a husband and his wife came from an old movie, listen carefully to what is being said, it’s kind of corny, but the message is true. … “O Robert, how can you love me when you are so strong and I am so weak? Robert reply’s and this is what I want you to listen closely to, “Elizabeth, my strength needs your weakness, just as much as your weakness needs my strength.” Ladies, its okay to admit to needing our husbands, that’s the way God made us. God made men and women or in this context husbands and wives to complement each other.
It’s all about relationships!
As her name implies Betty Busy Body was busy. If anybody wanted to know anything they knew exactly where to go. Betty Busy Body knew everything about everybody and was more than willing to share her knowledge. Gossiping was her specialty, oh, but that’s not what she called it. In her opinion she was just being friendly, and after all everyone would find out sooner or later any way. I Peter 4:15 would have been a good verse for Mrs. Betty Busybody to read and obey. It says “But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evil doer, or as a busybody in other peoples’ matters.”
Next, is Mrs. Lazy Lucy …
Mrs. Lazy Lucy never quite gets around to doing the things she knows she should, there really is no reason other than she just doesn’t want to. Her home is always a mess because she really needs to sleep in every morning with her not being a morning person and all and as for the afternoons well… she just couldn’t miss the next episodes of her soap operas. Her poor husband and children just kind of fend for themselves when it comes to meals and clean clothes. Lazy Lucy just never seems to get around to those ‘domestic’ chores. What about church, well it just takes too much effort. It’s easier to just stay at home … but she’s convinced she’ll be more in the mood to go … next week.
Last, we have Mrs. I Can Do It Myself or better known as Mrs. I am Woman! ...
The old song “I am Woman by Linda Ronstad sums up Mrs. I Can Do It Myself’s attitude well. She is a women’s libber through and through. She doesn’t need anyone to do anything for her, most especially her husband. She can “bring home the bacon and fry it up in a pan” as the song goes. She is a one-woman show? Mrs. I Can Do It Myself has forgotten something though. She’s forgotten about God’s plan for man and woman. She’s forgotten that each has a God assigned role and that each brings their own gifts to the marriage. The following dialogue between a husband and his wife came from an old movie, listen carefully to what is being said, it’s kind of corny, but the message is true. … “O Robert, how can you love me when you are so strong and I am so weak? Robert reply’s and this is what I want you to listen closely to, “Elizabeth, my strength needs your weakness, just as much as your weakness needs my strength.” Ladies, its okay to admit to needing our husbands, that’s the way God made us. God made men and women or in this context husbands and wives to complement each other.
It’s all about relationships!
patsy
Thank you so very much for this lesson...it was much needed by me!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your words of encouragement Mary Ann.
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