Tag: influence

marriage

How We Pull Our Husbands Into Sin

momsenseblogs

“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it” (Genesis 3:6 NIV).

How I wish I was never responsible for leading my husband into sin. But that is just not the case. I do this, ladies. I do it over and over again.

In case you are thinking, “Wow! She must be a really sinful woman!”, let me clarify. The sin I tend to pull my husband into isn’t the type of sin that will get him in the kind of trouble Eve got Adam into.

It is the average day-to-day sin I tend to draw him into. Those times when the enemy is doing his finest work in my attitude and actions that my husband gets pulled in, either intentionally or unintentionally.

I get cranky with the kids and share my frustrations with him, then he gets cranky with the kids. I gossip about a friend and then he shares about his coworker. I come home in a poor attitude and before you know it my husbands mood is negative.

I choose an unhealthy late night snack, and there goes the hubs, digging into the Whoppers right alongside me. And I know full well this isn’t ideal for his diabetes. When you are diabetic, Whoppers are just as forbidden as that beautiful piece of fruit Eve held out to Adam.

I know full well before I do these things what the outcome will be. Yet it doesn’t stop me from it.

It’s the everyday attitudes and choices we make that have the power to influence our man. Most of them, we don’t even give a second thought.

I wonder if Eve thought twice about offering that temptation to Adam. If she had pondered it a little longer, I wonder if she would have chosen differently.

As wives we have the ability to establish the temperament and attitude of our home. We hold the power of influence and the power of suggestion. When we choose happy, our home tends to be a happy place.

When we choose grumpy, cranky, and mean, this becomes the environment of our home. The choices we make pull the people around us into our little piece of Eden.

Wives, what can we take away from this? Perhaps it would be to be mindful of the power we have to influence our husbands – the ability to sway their thoughts and actions. This can be a wonderful thing when we are drawing them to Christ.

It can also be a sinful thing when we are seeking them to take on our fleshly thoughts and actions. Let’s use our influence for the glory of God, not for the temptation of those we hold dearest to our hearts.

Motherhood

Second Chances

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Start children off on the way they should go, and even when. They are old they will not turn from it. (Proverbs 22:6)

One of the things we can be so very thankful for as mothers is that we get the privilege and opportunity to teach and train our children in the ways of the Lord. What a difference we can make in our families and communities! What a difference we can make for the Kingdom! God chooses each of us specifically for the children He brings into our lives.

For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised. (Genesis 18:19)

God promised Abraham descendants more numerous than the stars. We are those descendants. And as we parent our children, we continue to pass down the precepts of our Father. What an absolute honor to be chosen for a purpose such as this. How grateful we should be that God sees us as worthy of this calling.

God chose me to not only guide and teach my four biological children, but also three through adoption. They are extra special gifts to me because they are “second chance” kids. What do I mean when I say “second chance”? Obviously, they are getting a second chance with parents who can love and provide for them, who can nurture them, who can teach them about Jesus and his great love and sacrifice. But, I too, get a second chance. Like all mamas, I have made a lot of mistakes in my parenting. I have learned many lessons the hard way. But God is so good! He gives me a second chance to parent children, to utilize what I have learned along the way, and to make a lasting difference in their lives. Oh, what a blessing that is to this mama’s heart!

Guiding our children towards Jesus isn’t always an easy task. This world is a little crazy sometimes, and it is often difficult to find the ribbons of love flowing through the fabric of hatred. But if we look hard enough, we will find it. Then we can point our children towards the light of Jesus Christ. We can offer them the hope and promise that walking with him brings. We can share salvation with them and direct their eternity.

If you feel you have been failing in this area, don’t despair. God is a merciful God and He will give you more opportunities to be that lamp post for your children. He is a God of second chances…and for that I am very grateful.