Devotion 2: Not Always Right

Justin Foroozan 

"Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish." Ephesians 5:25-27 

I'm really bad at sitting still. When I get home after a long day of work, the last thing I want to do is sit on the couch and do nothing. Usually, I'll do some chores, work on a home renovation, or go to the garage and tinker on something. My wife knows this, and in her love and wisdom, she has warned me again and again to "change my clothes" before going into the garage. Unfortunately, I don't always heed her warning. It was not until Sunday morning when I was looking for my nice clothes for church, that I realized all my clothes were stained! My wife very lovingly looked at me and said those dreaded words, "Told ya so." 

There is a verse in Proverbs that says, "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice" (Proverbs 12:15). When I read this verse, the first thing that comes into my mind is, “Well, of course!” However, more recently I've started to see that this is something I should apply more often, not just at work or in a hobby, but even more with my marriage. I tend to fall into the trap of thinking I know better than I do. For me, it is usually caused by a fear of thinking I need to have everything figured out, or by my arrogance of thinking I do have everything figured out. Either way, it is on me when I become the fool who is right in my own eyes. 

The book of Genesis tells us, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). When we become one flesh with our wives, they are also becoming one flesh with us. It's easy to think that we know better, but we must remember that our spouse knows us better than any other person. We can't agree with the proverb when it tells us "a wise man listens to advice," then reject the advice we receive from the person who knows the most about us! Listening to our wives means heeding their warnings instead of ending up with oil-stained pants at a Sunday gathering. It means we are not always right! 

Lord, thank you for all that you do. Thank you for your mercy and guidance as we traverse this world. I pray that I humble myself before you and before my family. I pray that I am not clouded with doubt, fear, or arrogance when offered advice. And I pray that you use my wife to speak into my life. In Jesus name, Amen.