A Fruitful Vine

Psalm 128:3 

"Thy wife shall be as 

a fruitful vine by the sides 

of thine house:"

A vine makes any building look beautiful.  Here in Thailand, I often see corrugated tin shacks that are completely covered with beautiful blooming vines.  Some pink, some white, some mauve, but all beautiful and sweetly scented.  Sometimes it's a cucumber vine or a bitter gourd vine.  I also see grand houses with bougainvillea crawling up the house in grand bursts of fuchsia and white.

No matter how grand or lowly the house, a beautiful vine makes an improvement.  A vine changes our perception of the building.  A vine covers imperfections.

What a beautiful picture of marriage.  My husband is the building - my life, the vine.  We have the opportunity as wives to beautify the lives and ministries of our husbands.  No matter how grand or lowly the man, we can be a help and a blessing to him.  No man is perfect, but we can help balance out and beautify those imperfections.  I'm not saying that we join in sin with our husbands as Sapphira did.  She became a partaker in sin while trying to cover it up.  I'm saying that we should be our husband's best friend and do our best to make him look good.  And let's face it - we do change people's perception of our husbands - either for the better or for the worse.  Now that reminds me of some promises that we all as wives have made .....

Today

Today...

Today I want to be his helper... his help meet... his wife.

Genesis 2:18 "And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone;

I will make him an help meet for him." 

When I think about when God created woman, I am reminded that woman was created out of His great love and compassion for man.

God saw a need that man had.

He was alone.

Proverbs 31:11 "The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her,

so that he shall have no need of spoil." 

Today I want to do him good.

He has so much weight on his shoulders. So much responsibility. When he comes home I want to greet him... to help bear his burdens... to listen.

A good meal.

A tender voice.

A smile.

Proverbs 31:12  "She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life." 

Today...

Today I want to love him. I want to love him the way he needs... the way he craves. I want to give him the affection that is so desired, yet in this hard, harsh, calloused, sin-filled world it is so hard to find.

I am his helper.

I am his friend.

Titus 2:4  "That they may teach the young women...

to love their husbands..."

Today...

Today I want to be his biggest cheerleader, his tender companion, his partner in ministry.

I want the love of Christ to flow through me to him.

Because tomorrow he will have to go back out into the world and face it all again... seeking to glorify God while reaching out to a lost and dying world. And I want him to know someone is praying... someone is preparing a refuge for him... an oasis in the home for him to return to... someone is on his side at all times.

Today...

To all the missionary wives who support their husbands through every trial and hardship on the field, thank you.

Saddling My Camel: Becoming a Sarah

She saddled her camel and jumped on... Wait. Do you saddle a camel?

Ok. She threw a blanket on her camel and jumped on... Well, maybe it was a donkey. Whatever she rode on, the fact of the matter is, she followed Abraham.

Delightful Deputation (Part 2) The Family

If you haven't read Delightful Deputation (Part 1) The Focus, click HERE to read it.

Maybe your definition of deputation is this: That time period when a missionary family's home is a cramped hybrid of a minivan and a hotel room until they get a real home again on the field.

I must admit, five people living in a tiny hotel room with two double beds (on a good day) and one tiny bathroom isn't my favorite living space, but I must challenge you to transform your definition. Not your definition of deputation, but your definition of home.

6 Ways to Pray for your Man

Many know that my Prince Charming had to return to Jamaica ahead of us to carry on the work in the church we started.  It's been hard managing 5 kids by myself and keeping my sanity.  I miss my man terribly, but we talk often and send messages via our phones all the time.

{Between you and me} I treasure the sweet words and thoughts he sends that normally he wouldn't write down.  I now have proof he's just as romantic as I am!  No, I'm not going to share his tender side right now.  Those are for my eyes alone.  {Deep sigh}  Yep, I'm pretty stuck on him.

God has placed specific people in your life for a purpose.  If you are blessed to be married,  you have an even greater responsibility to this person who is your other half.  {Told you I was feeling mushy!} One part of being the wife God wants me to be is by praying for my husband.  Sadly, this is one area that I feel I have failed miserably.  I'm so blessed to have a Godly husband who loves me deeply and completely.  I don't take it for granted.  Being apart makes me more aware of the dangers and temptations a man is subjected to in this wicked old world.

1. Pray for his daily walk with the Lord and for him to keep up his personal prayer time.

2. Pray for God's blessing on his life.

3. Pray for God's hand of safety and protection over him.

4. Pray for his vision and dreams.

5. Pray for his purity.

6. Pray for his testimony and witness. 

Written by Maria
She and her family are missionaries in Jamaica. 

You can read more about them here.