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Girl Meets God
by Melissa Mathews
"Let the wife make the husband glad to come home,
and let him make her sorry to see him leave. -- Martin Luther
I have four great boys. And being the wise woman that I am, I am training them to adore me. They have a mantra that I require of them at least once a day:
"I love my Mother very much.
She is my favorite Mother
In the whole, wide world.
I cannot live without her."
You might think that I'm kidding. But I'm not. I love to hear it. They can never say it too many times. And when they hug me close, and say that to me, I'm liable to give them whatever they want.
Sometimes, as I'm squeezing one of my boys tightly, I wonder why I don't hug my husband that way anymore. Why don't I give Scott a big bear hug and say "What can I do for you? You can have anything you want!!" Maybe as a wife, you do that--and to you I say "wow" or "congratulations on your recent marriage."
Why don't I adore him and serve him the way I used to-with an eager heart that would go to China and back to make him happy? Where did the boundless energy go that ironed all his shirts and made his favorite food? Why don't I show the same level of enthusiasm and devotion to Scott that I used to?
Did he hurt me, ask too much of me, give me too many kids? Or have I just forgotten the divine role that God has so graciously placed me in - the role of being helper, lover, friend, and cheerleader to a man who once occupied every minute of my thoughts - a man with whom I chose to spend the rest of my life. I've forgotten the very reason God gave for creating the woman-- "It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him" (Genesis 2:18).
What an honorable task-to help the most wonderful guy in the world do something out-of-this-world. Maybe I need to work on my own mantra.
"I love my husband very much.
He is my favorite husband
in the whole wide world.
I cannot live without him."
(And he can't live without me!)
(This is one of my first and favorite columns, thus a re-run. But it's something I can always stand to hear again. I hope it comes in handy for you as well.)
Scott and I have been married 22 years and currently live in Northern California where we are beginning year five as church planters. I also teach 12th grade English and love it.
I would love to hear from you. Email me anytime at melissa.g.mathews@gmail.com
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