I woke up this morning with a word on my brain. Now I didn’t say a WORD, like from the Lord, a passage of scripture or an epiphany. Just a word. In this case, it was the word “erode”. I thought to myself, “maybe a geologist would wake up thinking about erosion, but not me, normal American homemaker and mother of two.” Weird.
So, then I sat down to have my quiet time, read my devotional and work on my bible studies (yes, I’m doing two this summer – this girl needs accountability, people). For my devotional, I’m reading through Power of a Praying Wife. Here is what I read:
I will not allow confusion, miscommunication, wrong attitudes, and bad choices erode what we are trying to build together.
Huh. Maybe there was more to this erosion thing than I originally thought. I consulted my dictionary.
e-rode (verb used with object)
1. to eat into or away; destroy by slow consumption or disintegration: Battery acid had eroded the engine. Inflation erodes the value of our money.
Wow. Erosion has a LOT more to do with everyday life than just geology. I was struck by how it effects our relationships in particular. Case in point: marriages.
What are the things that we allow to erode our marriages? My book mentioned miscommunication and wrong attitudes/choices; these are certainly right up there. But, as I’ve thought about the almost 25 years of my marriage, and others with which I’ve become acquainted, there are other things. What about busyness and workaholism? Lack of common courtesy and simple respect? Focus on the kids exclusively, and never the couple? What about “real life” crowding into your sex life? Usurping authority? Using God as a stepping stone to reach up and grab the control? I could go on and on.
Satan has it in for our marriages. If he can take down a good marriage, it’s like getting a strike at the bowling alley. The king pin goes down and takes all the others down with it. I think “erosion” in this context is one of his favorite tools, because, like the definition says, “it destroys by slow consumption”. In other words, it happens slowly and silently until, like a termite-infested house, it falls to the ground leaving everyone who was living in it standing in horrified shock.
Erosion happens in this broken world, but we don’t have to sit silently and turn a blind eye. We can pay attention to what God says about marriage and follow the blueprints He’s given us. We can work with Him, together with our spouses, to build up what He has sanctioned for our benefit, instead of helping tear down what the silent killer seeks to destroy.
You know, maybe this was a WORD from the Lord. Perhaps it was (literally, in my case) a wake-up call.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. John 10:10
You are right on..
ps
i like the new look on your blog
I am doing this study too. It has totally changed the way I feel for my husband.
This was definitely from the Lord. Thank you for sharing and YES the enemy is always at work to erode our foundation.
It was good to visit your blog,
Nancy
Nice to meet you Melinda, I jumped over from LPM after your entry caught my eye since it mentioned The Shack. I would love to have a girlfriend discussion regarding this particular book. My Mom is currently reading it, as are two of my sisters, but so far only one girlfriend has dared read it.
Anyway, I loved it like I loved the Chronicles of Narnia, in that aside from being a good read (not quite C S Lewis, but good) it made me go places I would have never gone without it. I, myself tend to be a God in a Box kind of thinker, so it blew me away.
Anyway, I read through a bunch of your varied posts, and thoroughly enjoyed myself.
April
Melinda,
Great comments on the risks of allowing “erosion” to slowly work away at our marriages. Congratulations on 25 years and for being such a tender “listener”!
Bless you,
Pat
I have done this study as well, but think I may need to pull it back out and do it again!
Melinda,
Surprise! I love the opening paragraph at the top of you blog, as you are now aware that I am blessed with traveling. What a great analogy.
And then the Wake-Up call. You are right on, it is so important to invest in your spouse as you do your BEST Girlfriend. Last summer I did a study with my group of Girlfriends over on Maui titled “A Woman After God’s Own Heart”. It impacted my life! If you haven’t done it, I suggest it highly by Elizabeth George.
I’m coming back!
Lovingly,
Yolanda
Right on the money. Good Word and I’m so glad you shared.
Have a great weekend!
Blessings,
Fran