Often, my husband, Bert, will come home from work and almost immediately head to the bedroom saying, “I’m going to go change.” To which I teasingly reply, “Good. I’ve been praying for you to change!”

As playful as our back-and-forth is, we wives often pray for our husbands. And being the helpful servants we are, we often lend God a hand by pointing out to our husbands the specific areas he needs to work on. Unfortunately, the more “helpful” we are, the less good it does.

Have you read Proverbs 21:9, lately? Or do you tend to skip that verse? In case you’ve haven’t read it lately, here it is in the Amplified Bible Classic version. But I warn you, it’s not going to be your favorite verse. (It sure isn’t mine.)

It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop [on the flat oriental roof, exposed to all kinds of weather] than in a house shared with a nagging, quarrelsome, and faultfinding woman.

I warned you, didn’t I? And no … your husband didn’t put in a request to have that verse added to the Bible. Nor did he contact me to include it in this week’s column.

All kidding aside, it’s obvious that the reason this verse is one of our least favorites is because it’s a painfully convicting description. Not every day, of course, but certainly on the days when we’re end-of-our-rope frustrated.

Regardless of how frustrated we are, we’d much rather be like the wife described in Proverbs 31:12 (AMPC):

She comforts, encourages, and does him only good as long as there is life within her.

Instead, we behave in ways that cause our husband to want to escape from our presence. He’d rather live on the roof, exposed to sweltering heat, torrential rain and blizzards than be inside his home … with us. Wow! That stings.

I’m not saying our husbands never drive us to the point that we want escape. But if you commit to hear me out for the next couple of weeks, I promise I’ll try not to marginalize your frustration. I’ve found, however, that I never find lasting satisfaction when I disrespect Bert. No matter how much I try to justify my actions.

Until next time, think about the two verses I quoted in this week’s column. You can click on “Is your marriage at its wits end?” to read last week’s post. Next week, I’ll share one of the best verses to help you be the wife your husband will enjoy living with.

What about you?

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• Will you consider spending time this week thinking about both verses quoted in this post?

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