Jul. 14, 2008 - Monday Meanderings & Our Husband's Burden
Monday Meanderings with
1. Since dh was out of town all last week, I am mainly focusing on trying to stay at home as much as possible to reconnect with him when he is here. A gracious friend is keeping dd overnight on Tuesday so that dh and I can have some "alone" time. 
2. Dd and I started doing school last week. We finished up in early April, so we are both ready to get back into a bit of a routine. I am having her work on math and grammar every day so that we can get some things out of the way and take a little of the pressure off for getting everything done at once.
3. I plan to continue working on making out my science lesson plans for this year.
4. I need to try to find make time to save all of my devotions to a cd-rom. It would be best to get this done before we start doing every subject in our school work.
5. I need to make a couple of important phone calls. One is in regard to the GT Express I bought a couple of months ago. Already, the teflon coating is coming off of it. 
I love our GT Express, but I don't like the cheap way they were made! 
And believe me, they weren't cheap to buy! 
Since my husband was gone all last week, I thought this devotion would be very appropriate to share with you. I pray it gives you some fresh insight into your own husband and his burdens.
Our Husband's Burden
Women who are stay-at-home moms are in a better position to attend Bible studies, watch Christian TV, listen to Christian radio, and spend more time in the Word. This can help us grow immensely in our walk with the Lord.
A problem arises, however, when we start to think we are more spiritual than our husband because we rarely see him in the Word. What we fail to realize is that he can't be in the Word like we can because he is working so hard to provide for the family. We need to realize that he has a tremendous burden on him in doing that! It should move us to intercede on his behalf a lot more than we probably do.
We may not be aware of how he may truly be growing in his walk with the Lord as he carries the burden of meeting all of the monthly financial obligations. There's the mortgage, the car payment, utility bills, food, and insurance, just to name a few. That doesn't even include the extras such as braces or the cost of gymnastics, ballet, soccer, or basketball. God may be using the weight of the financial burden to really develop your husband's dependency upon Himself.
I remember hearing a pastor say that a man's mind is constantly thinking about finances, the bills, and being the sole provider. When he asked the men in the congregation if he was correct in his assessment, the sanctuary erupted with a chorus of ‘Amen.’
God may be teaching your husband to trust Him, while maintaining a peaceful heart when he hears about more job cuts in his company. God may be developing his spirituality in the many situations he faces every day. If he works with the public, he may be learning to extend grace to people in ways that create huge spiritual growth in his life. God may develop him through the ‘school of hard knocks,’ rather than through the resources that you have at your disposal.
I know that when I became a stay-at-home mom, I grew in ways that I never thought possible. Yet, at the same time, when I worked full time as a customer service rep, I also had many opportunities to grow in grace while dealing with very upset customers. When I worked at the hospital, often dealing with families whose loved ones were terminally ill, God used those experiences to help me learn to show mercy and compassion, even while taking care of the paperwork to get their loved one admitted to our unit. So, you see, God can do wonders in developing your husband's spiritual walk, even while he is at work.
Our husbands carry a heavy load, knowing that if they don't provide for their own family, they are worse than an infidel. (I Timothy 5:8) That is a huge load to carry, and if we fail to realize how deeply spiritual it is to meet this obligation, we fail to be that crowning glory to our husband. (Proverbs 12:4) When we bless them, encourage them, and thank them for the wonderful way in which they provide for our family, we speak life to them. (Proverbs 18:21) When we encourage them, as well as pray for them, we also fulfill the words in Galatians 6:2 where it tells us to carry each other's burdens.
Do you need to help ‘carry’ his burden?
© 2005, Stacy R. Miller
Comments
Jul. 13, 2008 - WOW!
Posted by burttbunch
I just wanted to let you know how much this devotion BLESSED ME!!! I needed this devotion and I needed it today! Thank you so much!
May God continue to use you!
Jul. 14, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by journeymomma
This is soooo good! I am always blessed by reading your blog, thank you for your writings. :-)
