Monday, January 9, 2012

The ABC’s of Evil toward Your Husband

By Jennifer R.

I found this while going through some old files. I have no idea where it came from, so I apologize that I can't give credit where it is due. (EDITED: Since this was published, I found out it was written by Beth Quinn.) However, I thought it would be beneficial for us to examine our hearts and attitudes to make sure we are not doing anything on this list.

The ABC’s of Evil toward Your Husband

“She does him good and not evil all the days of her life” (Proverbs 31:12)

A - Act with anger

James 1:20 – “For the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”

B - Be bitter

Hebrews 12:15 – “See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled.”

C - Compare him to other husbands

Proverbs 31:26 – “She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.”

D - Display discontent toward your husband

1 Timothy 6:8 – “If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content.”

E - Excessive focus on external beauty

Proverbs 31:30 – “Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.”

F - Find fault with your husband

Proverbs 21:9 – “It is better to live in a corner of a roof than in a house shared with a contentious woman.”

G - Gripe

Philippians 2:14 – “Do all things without grumbling or disputing.”

H - Hate housework

Proverbs 31:27 – “She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness.”

I - Insist on your own way

Philippians 2:3-4 – “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.”

J - Justify jealousy

1 Corinthians 13:4 – “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant,”

K - Keep a record of wrongs

1 Corinthians 13:5 – “does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,”

L - Love laziness

Proverbs 6:6-8 – “Go to the ant, O sluggard, observe her ways and be wise, which, having no chief, officer or ruler, prepares her food in the summer and gathers her provision in the harvest.”

M - Manipulate matters

Psalm 25:21 – “Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for You.”

N - Nag, nag, nag!

Proverbs 27:15 – “A constant dripping on a day of steady rain and a contentious woman are alike;”

O - Ostracize his family

Matthew 19:19 – “Honor your father and mother; and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

P - Patronize your husband

Ephesians 5:33b – “The wife must see to it that she respects her husband.”

Q - Quit kissing

1 Corinthians 7:3-5 – “The husband must fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise also the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise also the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.”

R - Resent your husband

Proverbs 21:19 – “It is better to live in a desert land than with a contentious and vexing woman.”

S - Speak sarcastically to your husband

Proverbs 21:23 – “He who guards his mouth and his tongue, guards his soul from troubles.”

T - Tell your husband’s faults to others

1 Corinthians 13:7-8a – “[Love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.”

U - Uncover his sins with an attempt to cover your own!

Matthew 7:3 – “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?”

V - Vacillate on your commitment

Matthew 5:37 – “But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil.”

W - Window shop and want more “stuff!”

Proverbs 19:14 – “House and wealth are an inheritance from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the LORD.”

X - Exasperate your children

Ephesians 6:4 – “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”

Y - Yell often!

Proverbs 15:1 – “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

Z - Zero hospitality

1 Timothy 3:2 – “An overseer, then, must be … hospitable…”