Being a good wife is a lot like being a good cook.
Any cook using the same recipe and instructions can produce a dish that tastes entirely different from another. Why is this?
Well, attention to detail distinguishes a great cook from an average one.
Take fried apples for example… All that you need are apples, sugar, butter and cinnamon. But, not every cook makes them the same. I cook mine on high (I want them slightly caramelized) and I never put a top on or they get mushy. If you take the same ingredients, cook them on low and put a lid on the top- it produces a recipe that doesn’t resemble mine at all. The same recipe can produce a totally different result.
If you want to know difference between a good wife and an average wife, you’ll find the answer is the same. There are hundreds of recipes for being a good wife. The ingredient list is usually pretty similar in every recipe; Love, Respect, Communication, Intimacy, Time, Service, Prayer. . . Even if the recipe is followed directly and not one ingredient neglected, the outcome can be totally different.
Take the Good Wife Recipe for example:
If you Love in proportion to what is given you, the recipe will not rise to the fullest flavor meant to be. Love unconditionally at 100%. Give all with no expectations of a return. Love with every ounce of your being and when you have given all- squeeze even more out. Those drops are the best.
Respect is a vital ingredient, one I didn’t fully understand when I got married. I loved my husband, but didn’t respect all of his ideas. I had my own ideas of how things should be. And naturally, I thought I was right. After years of this wrong balance the Lord showed me that I wasn’t respecting Dale’s role in our family; his thinking and his leading. I asked God to help me and He did. I respect Dale’s thinking. He is actually right most often—I just had to learn to listen before reacting and respect his thoughts.
Communication is a delicate balance of listening and talking. When we listen not only with your ears but with our heart we are able to remember everything that he shares. We should be his greatest advocate in the good days and the hardest of days. Allow nothing to hinder this vital ingredient. He needs to know you care about his every thought, dream, and burden.
Intimacy- There is much to be said on this topic, for now all I will say is- DO NOT NEGLECT this ingredient! The spicier you make it, the better; the easier the other ingredients gel together into the perfect recipe.
Time and Service- You could be the greatest lover of all wives but if you neglect spending quality time with your husband, and creating an atmosphere of love– your recipe will fall flat. What would he love for you to do with him? What ways you can help him? What are his favorite meals?
Prayer- Many nights I wake up and while he sleeps, I watch him and pray. I pray for his health, his work, and his dreams to be fulfilled. The Lord has been faithful to answer.
The Good Wife Recipe is one of sacrifice, but produces the greatest of marriages. I am in mad love with my husband. I’ve noticed that the more I put into the recipe, the more I get out of it- and the more passionate my marriage is. The more passionate it becomes the less work it is. My desire to love becomes greater, ability to respect becomes second nature, communication becomes like-minded, making love sweeter than any romance novel could ever pen, and time with him my desire not duty.
All my days of marriage were not easy. Every man is different and his needs different from another. It was trial and error in the beginning but perseverance and desire for the very best marriage was my passion.
Being a good wife is a lot like being a good cook. Any given wife using the same recipe and instructions can produce a marriage that is entirely different from another. Why is this?
It’s because attention to detail delineates a good wife from an average one.
The secret to The Good Wife Recipe; Do not neglect one ingredient. They are all free, but it will be how deliberate you are with the finer details that will determine the outcome.
Read Proverbs 31:10-31 for in-depth details about the Good Wife.
You should make him fried apples and pancakes! Top them with some whipped cream, yum! Here are the recipes. . .
http://sharonglasgow.com/2012/04/carmelized-fried-apples/
http://sharonglasgow.com/2012/09/best-pancake-recipe/