Rebekah Staggs

Genesis 25:21  And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.

1 Peter 3:7  Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.

Psalms 112:1  Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.

Proverbs 20:6  Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?

I was doing my devotional today and this really jumped out at me:

Proverbs 4:23-27 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” The heart is the source from which our thoughts, choices, actions spring forth from. All issues of life begin in the heart. They continue through thought and what we choose to say and see. Thoughts direct our footsteps and become actions. Our actions in life have consequences both good and bad. We are known by our fruits. (Matt 7:17-20) All consequences from actions taken begin in the heart.

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

So often I’ve heard it said of men and women in a bad situation, “S/He has a good heart.” or “His/her heart is in the right place.” Wrong! That is just a poor excuse trying to excuse poor behavior. We are born with an evil sin nature. We are responsible to try to subdue it. Being in a sinful situation is the result of failure to subdue the heart and our sin nature.

Luke 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

How can one who is surrounded by the continual consequences of choices and actions that are sinful have a good heart?

Ezekiel 33:31-32 And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness. And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not.

They hear, but they do not do. With their mouth they show love, but their heart goes after covetousness. They say all the right things, but do them not. While it might look and sound on the outside that their “heart is in the right place” the fruit and consequences for actions prove it to be superficial and to go no more than skin deep.

Keep thy heart with all diligence.

I recently red a blog about wearing dish gloves: http://www.fruitofherhands.com/2011/02/12/dish-gloves/ The author talked about her dry, chapped, and bleeding hands. About how wearing dish gloves and applying lotion has improved their condition. It reminded me of our lives and how God works in our lives.

When we try to live our lives with out God we become:
Dry
Chapped
Hardened
Calloused
Dirt gets stuck under our nails
Sometimes we are so broken we bleed

When we allow God to work in our lives. When we Pray. When we read the Bible. When we Worship. When we look to Him to be our protection and Balm we can withstand:
The hottest waters
The soap of coming clean from
The dirt and grime of life

We have a protective layer, a shield, between us and the particles of the world. We have the balm of His love, and word, to comfort and soothe us. Just as we put on our dish/garden gloves to protect our hands before performing these tasks, we should prepare ourselves for our daily lives by looking to Him to be our shield and our comfort.

Ephesians 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

2 Corinthians 1:4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

Or a more eloquent way of saying the same thing:

Wives should manifest such a character as to be worthy of love. They
owe this to their husbands. They demand the confidence and affection of man;
and they should show that they are worthy of that confidence and affection.

It is not possible to love that which is unlovely, nor to force affection where it is
undeserved; and, as a wife expects that a husband will love her more than he
does any other earthly being, it is but right that she should evince such a spirit as
shall make that proper.

A wife may easily alienate the affections of her partner
in life. If she is irritable and fault-finding; if none of his ways please her; if she
takes no interest in his plans, and in what he does; if she forsakes her home
when she should be there, and seeks happiness abroad; or, if at home, she never
greets him with a smile; if she is wasteful of his earnings, and extravagant in her
habits, it will be impossible to prevent the effects of such a course of life on his
mind.

And when a wife perceives the slightest evidence of alienated affection in
her husband, she should inquire at once whether she has not given occasion for
it, and exhibited such a spirit as tended inevitably to produce such a result.

– Barnes

1 Corinthians 11:7 For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man

We are the GLORY of our husbands. All that we are, do, and say reflects upon them. Think about that for a moment. Forget about making sure he is doing his “job” he has his own glory to reflect. Worry about your own job. How is your husband’s glory looking?

Pr 12:4 A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband: but she that maketh ashamed is as rottenness in his bones.
Pr 19:14 House and riches are the inheritance of fathers: and a prudent wife is from the LORD.
Pr 9:13 A foolish woman [is] clamorous: [she is] simple, and knoweth nothing.
Pr 11:22 [As] a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, [so is] a fair woman which is without discretion.
Pr 14:1 Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.
Pr 19:13 A foolish son [is] the calamity of his father: and the contentions of a wife [are] a continual dropping.
Pr 21:9 [It is] better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house.
Pr 21:19 [It is] better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and an angry woman.

We have the power to make him ashamed. We have the power to tear down our homes. We can be foolish, clamorous, loud, simple, knowing nothing, and without discretion. Causing our husbands to want to live in a corner of housetop, or in the wilderness, rather than with us.

How many men do you know that do just that to get away from their nagging wife? How many women do you know that are contentious and a continual dropping that you’d love to get away from?

Proverbs 31:10-12 Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies. The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.
Proverbs 31:26-28 She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness. She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.

Or we can be a crown to him. We can build up our homes. We can be a prudent wife from the LORD. A Proverbs 31 Woman. A virtuous woman worth more than rubies. One who has the trust of her husband’s heart. Who will do him good and not evil all her days. One who speaks with wisdom and kindness. Who looks to her own house. One with children that call her blessed. One who’s husband calls her blessed and praises her!

How many men do you know that do that? How many women do you know that are worthy of that?

How can we bring glory to our husbands?

Conversation: What we say about and in front of our husbands counts. Praise him to your friends. Don’t put him down and reveal his faults. Don’t slander him, even if it is true. Do and say things that build him up instead of tearing him down and putting a wedge between the two of you. Make your commitment to him and the marriage covenant obvious.

Organize: Your home, your time, your life. When you are organized about your home, meals, and lifestyle you waste less time in accomplishing goals. Spend your time wisely. Are you doing things that glorify your husband? Do they take time away from him? How does he feel about them? As you fulfill your responsibilities your husband is free to fill his. Give yourself the time and ability to save some energy just for him. Pray for him. Encourage him. Put him first! Yes, over your children, extended family, work, Ladies Bible Study and other obligations. Make your commitment to him and the marriage covenant obvious.

Discretion: When your husband sins, again don’t take it to your friends, tell him privately. In a submissive and gentle way. Don’t hold on to it only to pull it out again later and bash him over the head with it every time you disagree. Don’t air his laundry for all the world. Make your commitment to him and the marriage covenant obvious.

Remember just as God is glorified when man obeys Him, out  husbands are glorified when we obey them…