Home Destroyers, Part V, No. 213
HOME DESTROYERS
Part 5
Proverbs 14:17 “He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly.” Read also Ecclesiastes 7.9.
Today is our last devotion in this series of things that have the power to destroy our home.
5. CONTENTION
Proverbs 19:13, “The contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.” This is repeated again in Proverbs 27:15. In fact Proverbs 27:16 continues, “He who would restrain her restrains the wind, and grasps oil with his right hand.”
Proverbs 21:19, “It is better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and an angry woman.” This is also repeated again in Proverbs 19:9 and 25:24.
Other versions of the Bible translate this contentious woman as ‘crabby, complaining, nagging, quarrelsome, ill-tempered, cross and petulant, scolding and irritable.’ The actual Hebrew word is madown which means ‘to quarrel, to cause discord or strife.’ Not a very nice description, is it?
It’s easy to nag. It’s easy to pick a quarrel. But it is destructive, so why do we do it?
Does this mean that we cannot tell our husband something that we are concerned about? No. We are workers together in building our family. Share your concern with your husband-- in a spirit of meekness. Ask him how he thinks the situation could be remedied. Men love to give answers.
Once you have shared your concerns, keep quiet. But here’s the secret. You don’t keep quiet on your knees. Cry out to God and ask Him to deal with your husband. Don’t give up praying until you see the answers.
The opposite of contention is harmony and unity. May God help us to work on another habit in our lives. What can you do next time you feel contentious? Say No to your fleshly feelings and by faith speaks harmonious words. You won’t feel like it. You’d much rather nag or start a quarrel. But that is your old nature which you are so used to. Instead, remember that the Holy Spirit indwells you. Turn to Him and ask Him to reveal His Spirit of harmony and peace-making through you.
6. ADULTERY
Proverbs 2:18, “To deliver you from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her words, who forsakes the companion of her youth, and forgets the covenant of her God. For her house leads down to death, and her paths to the dead.” Read also Proverbs 7:27.
Adultery not only destroys a marriage and the home but hurts the children. When God talks about the breaking up of the covenant of marriage in Malachi 2:13-16 he uses the words “violence” and “treacherously”. In fact, in this short passage he repeats the word “treacherously” three times! God sees the breaking up of the marriage through adultery as treacherous! The Hebrew word is bagad and means ‘traitorous, unfaithful, deceitful and also implies pillage.’ Read Jeremiah 3:20.
How can it be that adultery is prevalent in the church today? I remember growing up in a little town in New Zealand. If a husband or wife went off with someone else it was the disgust of the town. And that was the attitude of non-Christians! And yet now it is prevalent for Christians to show tolerance for something God calls treacherous!
7. RENDERING EVIL FOR GOOD
Proverbs 17:13, “Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.”
How important it is to show a grateful heart to those who have blessed us in our lives. We can take things for granted so easily, can’t we? It is easy to carry on with life and forget the goodness of others. There are times when people will speak evil about those who have blessed them. We have experienced this many times in our lives. But we dare not get bitter. We must keep on blessing them and trust God to work in their lives. And God does not forget. God does His own avenging in His own time and in His own way. We can leave it totally with God.
Romans 12:19-21 says, “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves… for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Proverbs 25:21-22; Romans 10:30)
Love from
NANCY CAMPBELL
PRAYER:
“Oh God, please save me from being cranky and contentious. Please convict me when I become irritable or quarrelsome. Fill me with your Holy Spirit and help me establish unity in the home. Amen.”
AFFIRMATION:
I’m changing from crabby to happy!
P.S. The following are two books you can read about the Karen people of Burma. “A Land without Evil” by Benedict Rogers“Displaced Reflections” by Oddny Gumaer
There are many more, but these happen to be two I have read. Check the Internet.
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