Ecclesiastes 4: 7-6

Okay- before I start, I took a picture of a picture here. My scanner is not ready to go, so this is the best I can do for now! Late last night, David and I were still trying to get things organized and put away. He didn't have to be at work until 1:00 p.m. today, so we took advantage of that and stayed up late, late - like 2:00 a.m. As he was organizing my Easter wreaths and Autumn yard signs, I worked on photo albums and came across a whole slew of wedding memorabilia. I had saved wedding shower cards, table setting ideas, programs, receipts, and my favorite: thank you cards I had written that somehow never made it to the mailbox. Sorry about that! I also came across the hundreds of "Words of Wisdom" foldables that I had made for every table setting. At the reception, there was a cute foldable that asked for you to record your name and your best wedding advice. They were pastel pink, with big cream bows- very pretty if I do say so myself! So of course while David slaved away with the holiday decor, I sat myself down and read all of them. I don't think I had ever noticed it before, but lots of people wrote using a pseudonym. I never invited anyone to my wedding by the name of Bunny Flops or Chips Ahoy. I guess they needed to get something off their chest that they could not say being their true self. Whatever. Anyway, some of the advice was hysterical! Most of it was pretty funny considering my friends then were 19 and 20, and really knew nothing about being a grownup, and living on your own. I mean, David was a month 20 and I was five months from turning 20 when we got married. Yes, folks, that is 19 for those of you sitting there in shock; we were young. But for my defense, because I knew I would need a good one being from Arkansas and all, we had bought a brick, three bedroom, two bathroom house before the wedding, and I was a sophomore in college. We were high school sweethearts, so what can I say? Six years later, here we are. Still no kids. I know a few cheerleaders from the old days are still waiting on that one. : ) One card jumped right out at me. In fact, after six years of marriage, it is really the only one that brought me to my knees and left me speechless. Why? Because it is true. It was so "on" that I still think it was a word from God. It was written by a woman who had been married over 20 years at the time. She said: "Never allow someone to criticize your husband in front of you, and never criticize him in front of your friends. You speak his value." I was speechless. Not that I have been critical of my husband to anyone, but those words really humbled me. I read my bible this morning and found Ecclesiastes 4: 7-6 speaking to my heart about what being a Godly wife means. It says:
"A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back to back and conquer. They are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken."

Ladies, we need to speak words of affirmation about our husbands. We send them out into the work force, full of temptation and strife, and when they come home, they need to feel as though they are in a place of peace and refuge. Now, I'm not saying we shouldn't voice our opinion, because the good Lord knows I do, but we need to do it with a prayer in our heart. We need to spend some quiet time alone, preparing our hearts to speak words of kindness before we drop "the bomb on him", as I like to call it. I can think of plenty of times in the past month where I have basically bombarded him with questions, problems, and my to-do list before he even has a chance to take his shoes off. Girls, we need to remember that two are stronger than one, that we are to be team mates. How can we expect our husbands to take the leadership position in the workplace, and at church, but not not give him that respect at home. 1 Timothy 4: 7-16 says: "Train yourself to be Godly. For physical training has some value, but godliness has value for all things." In our daily actions that seem inconsequential, we can represent God. So before you criticize him in front of someone, remember, you are his team mate. You speak his value.