WHAT COUPLES SHOULD KNOW:
Marriage is a partnership and it takes the grace of God for two people to make it work.
It is an exhilarating experience to get married.
Thus, marriage is usually entered into with high hopes and expectations. Excitement of the marriage ceremony take a new turn as the couple begins to fellowship together, love ❤️, learn and appreciate one another with every passing day. But you will soon discover that the journey through the married life is full of ups and downs, highs and lows, delights🌸 and despairs 😩, darkness and daylights.
These chequered marriage experiences work for good.🌺
God permits this in His Wisdom so that the marriage bond will be strengthened.
On the other hand, these variegated marriage experiences can weaken and destroy the couple and their marriage.
To guard against marriage misfortune, I will explain some vital points in this chapter.
Let me first re-emphasise the fact that the success of a marriage depends on the two partners. The wife must be willing to give her utmost best in meeting the needs of her husband and making the marriage work. The husband must also give his all, his utmost best in making the marriage work. This expressly cancels selfishness out of the couple’s life. When you are self-centered and demanding as a partner, you are not working towards the success of your marriage.
The counsel not to be self-centered is however, just one of the things couples should know. Each partner must know his individual role. Both of them must know the areas where problems arise and finally they must know the mature and scriptural approach to solve the problems which arise.
Let me first focus on what the husband should know in order to fulfil his responsibilities in making the marriage work.
WIFE:
The Weaker But Precious Partner:
The number one task of the husband is to understand and appreciate his wife. The Bible calls her the “weaker vessel”. What does this mean? 1 Peter 3:7 reads:
“Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel,…”
1 Peter 3:7 KJV.
“Weaker Vessel” here does not connote a useless and unprofitable vessel. It only means that the wife is a tender vessel. She is precious, more delicate and fragile physically, and as such should be carefully handled.
Therefore, since the wife is precious and tender there are seven practical ways the husband should relate with her.
1) TENDERLY: The husband must be tender towards his wife. He must not display any show of physical but of Spiritual strength. Do not demand what you are not willing to give from your wife. The Bible says you should handle her as a “Weaker vessel” This suggests that you do not lord over her or be bossy and domineering.
2) POLITELY: Your marriage will be successful if the husband is polite towards the wife. When you meet a stranger, somebody you have never met before. What do you do? I am sure you meet him with a smile. You will want to entertain and help the person. Husbands need to show to their wives this kind of common politeness shown towards strangers. Be considerate towards her.
3) SOCIABLY: You must be sociable, cheerful and inviting at home. The cheerful disposition you show towards your colleagues in the office and your friends in the neighbourhood must be evident in your relationship with your wife at home. As a man, you get to the office and greet everybody with cheerfulness. You are humorous and you make everybody outside happy 😊. When you come into the home 🏡, carry that happiness with you, carry that cheerfulness with you, carry that humour with you. A little light-hearted word here and a little chat there should characterise your relationship with your wife. This is real companionship. Take the entertainment home with you.
4) UNDERSTANDINGLY: As a husband, you must strive to understand the fluctuations in the mood of your wife. Her temperament and feelings change, she has peculiarities that are unique to her. Different women have different reactions to the same problem. You must know your wife’s reactions to certain issues.
Sometimes, your wife Might be moody. She might appear sullen and incommunicable. This is not necessarily because something went wrong with her spirituality or morally. The problem could be physical, emotional, or psychological, due to hormonal changes in the body. So, you must be careful and observant, so as to be able to understand your wife’s temperaments and peculiarities. This will enable you relate with her patiently and understandingly.
5) FAIRLY: You must be fair to your wife in every area, especially in financial matters. You must be realistic in domestic budget. Don’t give her less than she requires. If you give her anything less than she requires the likelihood is that you will receive less than you deserve. In essence, if you do not treat her fairly in financial matters, don’t expect too much from whatever you give her.
PRIVATELY: Never rebuke your wife openly. When you want to correct her, do it in private. If you don’t want your children to disrespect their mother, don’t correct her while they are around. Don’t correct her in the presence of your patents either, lest they make derogatory remarks about her. If you want to correct your wife, make sure others are not within earshot. The privacy of your bedroom would be the best place for this.
As you correct your wife privately, you commend her publicly. Don’t run her down before anyone, no matter how she falls below your expectation. Focus on her strengths and showcase those in the public before your children, parents, friends, Pastor’s and neighbours. There are blessings in doing this.
Firstly, she will work hard to improve on her areas of weakness, and there will be better understanding between both of you. She will be more self-confident in public. And finally, she will respect you for the role you play in making her the wife she ought to be.
7) HONESTY AND TRUTHFULLY: The husband should not be deceitful or diplomatic. If a wife cannot trust the husband she will find it difficult to love ❤️ him. A woman needs to feel secured in her husband’s home.
The husband should show Honour, and courtesy, to the wife under every conceivable circumstance.
May The LORD God Almighty continue to bless us all in JESUS Mighty name Amen 🙏
BE RAPTURE READY
Shalom
Mrs Angelinah Olubunmi Peters
JESUS Is Alive In me
Mrs Angelinah Olubunmi Peters
JESUS Is Alive In me
