A gift from God

September 8, 2018

Proverbs 19:13-14

“A foolish son is ruin to his father, and a wife's quarreling is a continual dripping of rain.  House and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the Lord.” 

Let me be clear on this, when I married Jan she got the short end of the deal, on the outside, the public side, I acted very confident and yet inside I was a very insecure person who was full of fear.  Love, I knew the word but not the meaning, and much of the time would not nor could I share with anyone nor come to any real understanding of what the vows I had made were all about.

With that said let me also say that we both professed to be Christian, but what we came to understand was we were Baptist, who knew a lot about Jesus Christ, but neither of us had a personal relationship with the living Christ.  I do believe I was the foolish son to my dad and it breaks my heart that I was not a joy to him.

Now with that confession let me also confess that Jan my wife of 53 years is a fantastic lady, and a gift from God.  When I read about a wife that quarrels are like a dripping of rain, I’ve never experienced such things in our marriage.  Jan did often tell me to be kind, and tender and not so harsh, and over the years God has sent many men to teach me how to do that by the model they lived out in front of me.

So if you are a young man and are only looking at the outside package, she may be a drop dead 10 and a demon on the end side.  You would be wise to spend time with her parents and observe how they treat each other.  It would also be wise to pay close attention to how she interacts with them.  Note: ladies you also need to do the same with him, if you see too many red flags run.

The above counsel comes without charge, it was not asked for, and my dad was always quick to say such counsel has little value.  But guys these Proverbs are written by a man who had seven hundred wives, now he knew a little about the quarrelsome wife!  So these are some of the things he had to say: In Proverbs 21:9, “It is better to live in a corner of the housetop than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife.”  And verse 19, “It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman. “

How when it comes to the word prudent let me share the meaning of that word.

A person who is prudent looks like my wife Jan, they have good sense, and they are careful in considering consequences and careful in managing resources. 

 I will end with this statement from Solomon, and let me also answer King Solomon, I found her, and I am a blessed man.  “An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.”  (Proverbs 31:10-12)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice