Being a Wife

As far as married life goes, I'm still somewhat of a rookie. I've been married less than two years, but in this short time I've learned a lot about what it means to be a wife. And since making lists is one of my favorite things to do when I'm having trouble sleeping, I'll tell you about it in a list:

Being a wife means first and foremost being a friend. True friends don't always see eye-to-eye, but they love one another unconditionally, and support each other as well as they can.

Being a wife means not keeping score. It means being forgiving and letting go of things that he does wrong or other things he forgets to do right. It means being nice and doing nice things because you love him, not because it's your turn or because he has "earned" it.

Being a wife sometimes means foregoing sleep and personal time to take care of the house, the finances, the kids, etc. It means being the Energizer Bunny and working tirelessly to run the home.

Being a wife requires a good sense of humor. You must learn to laugh at yourself and your circumstances.

Being a wife means respecting differences and similarities alike.

Being a wife means rolling with the punches and finding the silver lining in the thunder cloud.

Being a wife means making a last-minute casserole out of whatever you can find in the fridge, and doing your best to make it taste good, be one time and have significant nutritional value-- all with one hand because your other is holding a baby.

Being a wife means doing your hair and makeup even though you're not going out, because your husband will see you tonight, and he's worth it.

Being a wife requires sincere prayer and well sought-out revelation.

Being a wife is a privilege that not everyone gets in this lifetime. I guess I might sound a little like someone from the fifties, preaching subservience and submissiveness to the all-powerful husband, but that's not at all what I mean. As I've stated before, men and women are equal, and should work together as equal partners. There are many things my husband does for me that I couldn't do, and many other things he does just because he loves me. I don't keep track of who does more things, or earns more did-stuff-for-you points. That's baloney. All I'm saying is that being a good wife is hard work, but it always has been, and always will be worth it. Nothing that is worth anything is easy.

Marriage is a refining process, and if approached with the proper attitude, is the pathway to true discipleship and ultimate happiness.