Until a year ago, my husband, Mark, lived in a “forever young” bubble. He looks great, works out regularly, and never gets sick. Another Saturday moving day came (a regular occurrence with 5 young adults in our family) because my daughter was moving into a new apartment. In the rush to get it done, only one son was available and my undaunted husband figured that was enough. The apartment was on the second floor. It is unclear which piece of furniture did the damage but by 7:00 that night he couldn’t walk. The lasting back pain continues to impact his patience levels. My girls were home during the holidays and noticed the change in him. What ensued was a discussion about marriage. When we vow to love in sickness and in health we vow to intimately walk in understanding and compassion with our husband.
Mark overestimated the strength of his back. Yet, if I fail to love him through his pain then I have overestimated the strength of my love for him. We all are susceptible to overestimating, whether it is our physical strength or the strength of our love and commitment to marriage. The remedy is to work out. If you want to be physically strong, you have to build muscle. If you want your marriage to be strong, you have to build up the characteristics of a wife who truly loves her husband. These are 25 characteristics of a wife who truly loves that came to my mind. Feel free to add more in the comments for the mutual benefit of us who desire to love well!
- Manages emotions in the home and anticipates pressure points.
- Encourages relationships between her husband and children.
- Is faithful to him emotionally in her heart and physically with her body.
- Uses kind words and guards her tongue.
- Will continually love through sickness and in health.
- Always loves for richer and for poorer.
- Loves for better and for worse.
- Loves God first, and husband, as the closest neighbor, second.
- Shows respect and understanding.
- Strives for likemindedness in financial decisions.
- Always strives for likemindedness in parenting decisions.
- Strives for likemindedness in extended family relationships.
- Aims for likemindedness in career moves.
- Strives for likemindedness in household responsibilities.
- Sacrifices for marriage when necessary.
- Shares vision for the future.
- Forgives injustices readily.
- Fights pride, resentment, and bitterness.
- Never keeps secrets.
- Sees husband as number one confidant.
- Follows through with commitments she has made to him.
- Patiently, confidently weathers difficult seasons in life with him.
- Frequently tells him that she loves him.
- Praises him and prays with him, daily.
- Thanks God for His provision of the man she chose to marry.
For 25 characteristics of a husband who truly loves his wife, see this article on our All Pro Dad site.
What is one characteristic you would add to the list?
