Foolish Children and a Nagging Wife

(Prov 19:13 NLT) A foolish child is a calamity to a father; a quarrelsome wife is as annoying as constant dripping.

I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend. I know for me it was a great time to get caught up on cleaning.

This morning will provide you a quote from Matthew Henry to help set the stage for this lesson. Henry said, "It is an instance of the vanity of the world that we are liable to the greatest grief in those things wherein we promise ourselves the greatest comfort." If you stopped 100 men on the street for an impromptu survey and asked them: "What are the top 5 things you need to have to consider yourself successful?" I am convinced that 'a great wife' and 'great children' would be towards the top of the list, if not 1 and 2. What greater comfort can a man have (outside of salvation in Christ) than a thriving marriage and responsible children who make good decisions? Hence Henry's quote, just like our children and spouse can bring us some of life's greatest joys, they also capable of causing some of life's greatest pains. Let's look at each individually:

Your children: The Hebrew word used for "calamity" in this text is plural and seems to express multiplied sorrow caused by the foolish son. Children can cause parents immeasurable grief. Countless parents today are adversely affected by the foolish decisions their children have made; paying the cost with visits to prison, the hospital, or even the morgue. That is why parents go to the lengths that they do in order to properly 'parent' their children. I hear a pastor once say, "A Father must do more than just have children. He raises his children to become mature adults. It is a painful, costly, time consuming, life draining, "stay up all hours of the night" type of relationship. It is not always a joyful experience for the Father or the Son. The cost is everything a Father has within him. The benefit is a son who will honor his Father." If you are a parent you have a Godly responsibility to do all you can to pour into your children all that the Father expects you to, so that they will be prepared for the rigors and challenges of life. And then again all of us are children. As children the Father expects us to honor Him and our parents by making wise decisions; decisions that will bring glory to our heavenly Father and our family name.

Your spouse: Another translation of "quarrelsome wife"calls her a "nagging wife." (this could also apply to husbands) Later on, in chapter 21, Solomon says, "It's better to stay outside on the roof of your house than to live inside with a nagging wife" (21:9). The Hebrew word used for quarrelsome or nagging is a words that means: a perpetual annoyance, a wearing out of patience. If this was not clear enough, Solomon goes on to compare the perpetually annoying spouse to the irritating and unrelenting drop after drop of an unwanted and unwelcomed leak. Have you ever had a leaky roof? The drips keep coming and there is not much you can do until you physically get up on the roof to address the issue. You can get buckets to catch the water, but the containers only hold but so much. Because the leak is unceasing the buckets offer but a temporary solution. You never get peace until you can actually STOP the leak. Wow, what a picture? As a believer you should never do anything to cause your spouse to compare you to this. You should be a source of comfort, strength, and support for your spouse; not a source of annoyance, aggravation and frustration.

So what does this mean to? It means you should walk in love - towards your parents, children, and spouse - and seek to honor God and your family name in all that you do.

Father, as a daughter I seek to honor my parents, my family name, and You in all that I do. My thoughts, decisions, and actions will be birthed from my prayer life and they will be aligned with Your Word. As a parent I honor You by pouring into my children all that has been poured into me. I do not take my responsibility lightly. I parent with diligence, dedication and discipline. My children will be raised in the fear and admonition of my Lord. Lastly, as a spouse I seek to build my spouse up and never to tear him down. My words are words are comfort, edification and exhortation. I love my spouse and I create and environment in my home that my spouse will always look forward to coming home to. My marriage personifies Your Love. In Jesus' name. Amen!