I had a sweet week of serving at the Women’s Leadership Conference in Alpinis, Romania. I love teaching God’s Word; it’s both invigorating and exhausting at the same wonderful time. Galatians is a rich, deep, and encouraging book to study. I love it when the scripture I’m teaching shines the most penetrating light into my own heart and life. This past week did not disappoint. God’s Word is living and active and sharp.
See more pictures from my time in Romania all this week on the Come Have a Peace Facebook page.
It’s good to be back home with my man. 3 flights carried me back home; the man beside me in Row 7 smelled like the Romanian salami I had for breakfast. And from all evidence in the airplane bathrooms, leaving the toilet seat up is a trait shared by men around the world. It made my miss my man even more. I was so glad to get home to him; he’s one of the minority who have overcome that habit. I count myself blessed. 🙂
If you’re glad to live with your man, you’re part of a dying breed.
Reading USA Today on a home bound flight revealed the trend of more and more people living alone. The number has been growing for six decades. Research shows that women adjust to solo living better than men do, nurturing relationships with friends and family. “Almost 28% of the nation’s 115 million households were living solo in 2011 compared with 26% in 2000, according to Census data.” The article acknowledges that, “Living alone is in some way a symptom of affluence.” In a world where we can have life the way we want it, people just don’t want to have to have others infringe on their choices and convenience. The easier it becomes to get what we want quickly through outlets like iPhones and internet shopping, the less practice we have at the unselfishness that living together successfully requires.
To try and make life together work, many men withdraw, and many women nag. “It is better to live in a corner of the housetop than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife” (Prov. 21:9). More and more adults are choosing to live “in a corner of the housetop” alone, rather than to do the work of learning to be selfless enough to live together. It takes time and mutual submission to get to a comfortable, share your space, use the same bathroom kind of living together. That’s so much more than being “roommates.” If we’re going to live together well, we have to work at it and let God’s spirit rule us, instead of our flesh (Galatians 5:16-17).
5 Steps to Being Better to Live With
- Ask your husband what you can do to be a good roommate (We all have habits …)
- Think of your husband’s needs first (Can he rest and enjoy your home?)
- Keep your home comfortable for him (Temperature, furniture, decor, size?)
- Contain yourself and yourself in a considerate way (That bathroom counter? Closet space?)
- Enjoy living with him (Don’t let little things spoil life together)
Are you committed to making “life together” work? Be committed to being a “roommate” your husband will enjoy, and you’ll enjoy a sweet blessing that’s growing rare with time.
