The Shoebox

As I was sitting here wondering what I wanted to write about for today, someone sent me an email. Since I do not believe in accidents, I will take this as a sign that this should be today's message. Enjoy!

A man and woman had been married for more than 60 years. They had shared everything. They had talked about everything. They had kept no secrets from each other except that the little old woman had a shoe box in the top of her closet that she had cautioned her husband never to open or ask her about.

For all of these years, he had never thought about the box, but one day the little old woman got very sick and the doctor said she would not recover.

In trying to sort out their affairs, the little old man took down the shoebox and took it to his wife's bedside. She agreed that it was time that he should know what was in the box. When he opened it, he found two knitted dolls and a stack of money totaling $95,000.

He asked her about the contents. "When we were to be married," she said, "my grandmother told me the secret of a happy marriage was to never argue. She told me that if I ever got angry with you, I should just keep quiet and knit a doll."

The little old man was so moved; he had to fight back tears. Only two precious dolls were in the box. She had only been angry with him two times in all those years of living and loving. He almost burst with happiness.

"Honey," he said, "that explains the dolls, but what about all of this money? Where did it come from?"

"Oh," she said, "that's the money I made from selling the dolls."


Prayer - 


Dear Lord, I pray for wisdom to understand my man; love to forgive him; & patience for his moods. Because Lord, if I pray for strength, I'll beat him to death; because I don't have time to crochet. 


I hope that you all enjoyed the comedy of this story, but that you also take from it the meaning & how it applies to what we have been learning. I hope that we don't have stores on our Blog Frog page selling crocheted dolls in a few weeks. LOL


Day Twenty - 


"And be kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you." (Ephesians 4.32)


It's time for some heart examination. As you continue in this 30 day challenge, have you found any roots of bitterness that are contaminating your relationship with your husband? Do you understand that as long as you are unwilling to forgive your husband - by God's grace & in His power - you will not be able to encourage him? Your own resentment will keep getting in the way. Now is the time to deal with any unforgiving attitudes. Forgive him, even as God has forgiven you.


Is your husband a forgiving man? Does he keep short accounts of your problems? Express your thankfulness for such a man. 


Does your husband - rightly or wrongly - harbor grudges against you? Again, are there things you need to change, or do you need to ask for his forgiveness for an offense? Help your husband be more forgiving by quickly forgiving him for his mistakes. 


Day Twenty Prayer - 


Pray that your husband will be patient & a man of peace. Pray that he will not give in to anger, but will allow the Holy Spirit to control his responses. (Rom. 14:19, Ps. 34:14)