A Good Husband

By Our Daily Bread

Read: Ephesians 5:25-33

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church. —Ephesians 5:25

Early in their marriage, the well- known preacher W. E. Sangster (1900-1960) told his wife, “I can’t be a good husbandand a good minister. I am going to be a good minister.”

Sangster was in demand as a preacher and lecturer and was often away on speaking tours. When he was at home, he seldom took his wife out for dinner or an evening of entertainment. Nor did he help with household chores. His son noted these failings, yet out of respect for his father he wrote, “If a ‘good husband’ is a man who loves his wife absolutely . . . and dedicates himself to a cause that is greater than both of them, then my father was as good a husband as a minister.”

No doubt Sangster was committed to his wife, but I believe he could have been a better husband and a better minister if he had been more concerned for her needs than for his busy schedule.

Many people in responsible positions have demands placed upon them, some that are unavoidable. But if a Christian husband takes seriously Paul’s instruction to love his wife “as Christ also loved the church,” he will find ways to give of himself for her, even in little things. That’s how Christ, our example, loved the church.

A marriage that's neglected
Brings pain and bitterness;
But one that's daily nurtured
Brings peace and happiness. —Sper

Nurture your marriage and you'll nourish your soul.