A Jesus-trusting, Bible-reading, Dr. Pepper-drinking, holey-t-shirt-wearing, meat-and-potatoes-loving, video-game-playing, hard-working MAN.
And I love that.
Every man is unique.
Do you encourage your man in his own particular brand of manliness?
Do you admire the muscles he's built up from a physically demanding job?
Do you listen to the crazy stories he has from his job as a lawyer/med student/photographer/whatever?
Do you thank him for working to support you, in whatever work he does?
Do you thank him when he helps you with your work, be it with your children or around the house?
Does your man know you appreciate him for just the man he is?
And are you the kind of wife who motivates her man to BE a man?
I pray that I'm that kind of wife. I work at these things, but I don't get them right all the time, or even most of the time.
But I am working at being the kind of wife who appreciates her man for the man he is, loves him the way he is, and encourages him to keep becoming the man God's created him to be.
After all, I'm a work in progress too!
What kind of man do you have? What's one way you can encourage him in his manliness? Share in the comments!
Linking with: Exceptionalistic, Yes They're All Ours, A Proverbs 31 Wife, The Alabaster Jar, The Better Mom , The Modest Mom
I have the mechanic man! And your statement was on par, I've seen his hands perfectly clean once. It was on our honeymoon after spending lots of time in the ocean! He is permanently stained. I am glad to say that my husband always shares about his day. It's difficult because seriously, I don't know what a crank shaft is, and I don't know what a cracked block is. I always listen and try to be encouraging...but I know there is always room for improvement! Great post!
ReplyDeleteYour comment made me AND my husband laugh! I don't know anything about cars either--or about cleaning and taking care of floors, which is what my husband does during the summer! I'm with you there...just try to listen and be encouraging! :)
DeleteThanks for this great post Jaimie. My mom had to remind me that I am dating a "manly man" - a pick-up truck driving, hunting, fishing, stockcar race watching man. I am learning to appreciate these things and take joy in the fact that they bring him joy. And as someone who's a fairly independent, pay my own way type woman, I've learned to graciously accept his generosity and desire to care for me... that has been one of the most difficult ones so far.
ReplyDeleteYES. "take joy in the fact that they bring him joy." I needed that-- what makes me husband happy? I should be thankful for those things and look for the good in them!
DeleteAnd I'm very much a "do it myself" kind of person, too... sometimes, though, it's nice to know I don't have to do everything myself. I am taken care of. I take comfort in that.
I have a hard working man both at his job and in the home. I definitely try my best to encourage him to be the man that he's suppose to be.I have a hard time finding the balance between encouragement and controlling. (If you know what I mean?)
ReplyDeleteGood reminder that we should be that for our husbands.
Oh, I absolutely know what you mean! There's a difference between being encouraging and trying to make our husbands into something they're not. I can "encourage" mine as much as I want to notice the messy bathroom floor, but soon that turns into nagging and an attempt to control his behavior, and that's just not going to work! Plus, it's not my job. I'm his wife, not his mother! That's another aspect of appreciating our men for who they are-- realizing that they're fellow adults, sons of God, and unique human beings: not someone we're supposed to try to change.
DeleteGood encouragement for all wives. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteBlessings!
Pam at 2 Encourage
I'm glad! Thank YOU! :)
DeleteGreat food for thought...my man's a good man who works hard and does his best. He's a great father and full of faith too. I don't always accept all parts of my man. Gotta work on that!!
ReplyDeleteI hear ya--I'm there, too! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting!
DeleteI try hard to encourage my husband, sometimes it's hard because he doesn't think I'm being truthful. But, honestly I am grateful for everything he does for our family. Thank you for this post!
ReplyDeleteCheck out my blog at:
dreamingofperfect.weebly.com
Just keep encouraging him--make it a habit to thank him for one specific thing every day (or more), and he'll realize that you really mean it! :) Thank you so much for commenting!
DeleteThis was a great post! It is so easy to fall into the trap of looking at areas where our man could improve and thinking critical thoughts. Just today, I found myself falling into that trap, and immediately took that thought captive and called it by name -- a thought sent from Satan to make me discontent and to sow seeds of destruction in our marriage! Instead I chose to focus my mind on my husband's outstanding and admirable qualities. However, I stopped short of verbalizing those and praising him! I wish I had encouraged his manliness and his amazingness, as you suggested here in this outstanding post! Thanks so much for writing this and for linking up at my blog, Yes They're All Ours! Blessings, Elizabeth
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Elizabeth! I think a lot of us struggle with these things... it's a constant effort to train our minds to focus on the good. Thank God, we can do all things through HIM who gives us strength! And it is he who helps us to not only think those good things, but tell our husbands about them. :)
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