Proverbs 31 Challenge- Day Three

Happy snow day again to all of you who are blessed enough to live in the Memphis area. While I am back at work today, I am trying to remember that there is still snow on the ground and that is reason enough to celebrate. Seriously, I love snow. For those of you who don't know, we got a surprise snow yesterday in the very early morning hours so I got to stay home from work and enjoy the snow with my hubby. I hope everyone had a nice and relaxing day like we did! But now, on to...

Day Three

"She does him good and not evil all the days of her life." Proverbs 31:12

Ok, ladies, if this verses doesn't knock you in your stomach a bit, you need to look into a mirror! A friend of mine, whom I lovingly refer to as my twin because we are so much alike, reminded me yesterday that Proverbs 31 is "not a yardstick for women to measure themselves by, but the goal in which all women should be moving to." Remember that today and let's get moving towards that goal!

The dictionary defines "good" as morally excellent, virtuous (does that sound familiar?), of high quality, well behaved, kind, genuine, sound, reliable, responsible, beneficial, cheerful, free of distress or pain, agreeable, pleasant, and a million other ways. Just take a look at those few descriptive words for a moment. Do you resemble any of them in regards to your husband? Most of them? None of them?

Now let's look at the definition of evil: morally wrong or bad, wicked, harmful, bad character or conduct, marked by anger or irritability, harm, mischief, and a lot more. Do any of these qualities sound like you in regards to your relationship with your husband? The words in bold were done on purpose- because they remind me of myself. Ouch.

The Word says here to do your husband good and not evil all the days of your life. Every single day. There are no exceptions cited here. That means to do him good (and not evil) even when you are having the world's worst day, when you are cramping and bloating with PMS, when you are pregnant and losing your mind, when he is mean to you, and even when he doesn't deserve it. When you are a newlywed. When you've been married ten years, fifty years, and sixty years. All of our days. Seven days a week. No holidays. Does that sound like a full time job to you? Me too. But let's go a little bit deeper into what this really means for us.

I found an explanation of this verse that I really like here. It says, "The virtuous woman deals out to her husband that which is good. She dishes out to him and serves him that which is good and not evil. She wants only God's highest and best for him. Her life and her deeds are a constant benefit and blessing to her husband. In doing good to her husband she is consistent. She doesn't serve him that which is good one day and that which is evil the next day. Her husband can count on her to do him good and to be a blessing to him. He can count on her to do this today, five days from now, one year from now, ten years from now, and all the days of her life. She is not up and down, hot and cold. Her godliness is marked with consistency. " That sounds awesome to me, the kind of wife and woman I want to be.

We are called to good to and for our husbands. But what on earth does that mean? I don't think I can just give you a list of good things to do for your husband every day. You know him better than anyone else. What would encourage him? How can you best bless him each day? Is there something you can help him with? Take over for him so he can spend his time on other things? I think we should sit down, brainstorm, and come up with ways to good for our husbands. Ways to bless them. And while we are doing that, I think it is only appropriate that we also brainstorm things that we need to stop doing that would be considered doing evil to our husbands. No, I'm not saying you have a voodoo doll of your husband hidden somewhere or something outlandishly evil, but sin is sin. Do you speak negatively about your husband to others? Do you put him down in public or in private? Do you spend the family money unwisely or selfishly? Do you watch things that you know he would disapprove of? Are you constantly angry at him or causing strife in your marriage? Make a list! Write it down! And then give both of these lists to the Lord so that He can do the work through you! But don't think that this little exercise won't cost you anything. If you have been following along with is the first two days, you know it is going to cost you something. Your pride, your hidden sin, your time, your heart. There is a price to pay. But with the Lord, you'll always have what it takes to pay the price, because He has already paid the ultimate price for us!

The challenge today: Make those lists! Write down what in your marriage is evilness that needs to be dealt with. And write down ways you can do your husband good. And remember, this is an everyday thing. Not just Valentine's Day or on the weekends or when you feel like it. May we be the women who do our husbands good and not evil all of our lives!

Here is a sneak peek at a few things from my list. My hubby reads this blog so I will only give you a snippet, I don't to spoil surprises for him!

To do Him Good:
Have his shirts ironed and lunches packed in the morning
To continue to "frugalize" my expenses
Send him encouraging texts each day
Read with him everyday
Encourage him 24/7
Ask questions!
Play the guitar and sing with him
Keep the furnace on as low as possible :)
Make friend time a priority
Get out of my comfort zone
Dance in public with him
Drink as much water as humanly possible
Leave my bad attitude and complaining at the door!

And Not Evil
Stop blaming him for my waking up late (ridiculous, I know!)
Keep unwholesome words out of my mouth and our conversations (Eph. 4:29)
Set nothing evil before my eyes (Psa 101:3)
Do not turn on my laptop at any point before reading the Word in the morning
Don't watch or listen to things I know he would not approve of
Divert my eyes from any other man, attractive or not
Don't complain or grumble
Be patient!!

I hope that you all are encouraged by the Lord today. Thanks for spending a few moments with me on this journey! May the Lord shine His face upon us and grow us!