If you're married, ask yourself if you've been a good wife to your husband. If you're single, ask yourself if you'll make a good wife someday. If you're completely unsure, the Bible will help guide your path to being a great Christian wife today or in the future.
A Great Wife is Supportive
You might've already heard the saying that behind every great man is a great woman. It is very important for a wife to support his husband and listen to his concerns. Women who are dismissive or simply ignore the need of their partners may unconsciously hurt the marriage.
However, this doesn't mean that Christian wives must always prioritize the needs and concerns of their husband first above all else. This also doesn't mean that wives must be at the husband's beck and call. But if the husband does have something to say, a good wife must show genuine care through listening and trying to her husband's needs as much as possible.
Moreover, a great wife must always be encouraging and motivating. Ephesians 4:29 says, "Let everything you say be good and helpful so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them."
Showing the opposite of this can be lethal to any marriage. If a wife discourages her husband, this will make the man feel useless and worthless. Discouragement comes in different forms such as complaining constantly or always criticizing the husband's actions and decision. At the end of the day, a husband will feel worse in the presence of his wife, instead of feeling more empowered.
A Great Wife is Reliable
In marriage, there must complete trust and confidence in one another. In Proverbs 31:11, it says, "Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life." This means that if a husband can rely and depend on his wife, this man will have a more fulfilling life.
A great wife must always be honest, honorable, and will always uphold her dignity. She stands by the truth and will fight for it. She will be faithful to her husband, nurturing of her children, and help her husband make sound decisions. She will be there through thick and thin. A Christian wife like this, will no doubt, enrich the life of her husband in more ways than one.
Additionally, when we speak of dependability, this will also touch upon a wife's dependence and independence. Too much of both will not be good for a marriage. An overly dependent wife will expect her husband to meet her every need. On the other hand, an overly independent wife will have a harder time submitting to her husband.
There must be a good balance between the husband and wife's co-dependence on one another. Further, husband and wives should treat each other as partners. This way, each one has something unique to offer to the marriage that the other person cannot.
A Great Wife is Always Respectful
While love is an important aspect of any relationship, there is also respect. To make a relationship work, a husband and wife must always have mutual respect for each other. This is non-negotiable. In fact, God also commanded wives to be always respectful of their husbands. Ephesians 5:33 says:
However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
No man will want to live out his lifetime with someone who doesn't respect him. No man will want to come home to a wife who demeans him or thinks low of him. To ensure a lasting marriage, the foundation of respect must be laid down. Bear in mind that one of the goals of a marriage is to make each other a better person, not the other way around.
A Christ-centered marriage is built on love, trust, respect, and faith. There is constant effort to be supportive, caring, and respectful of one another. Nobody said making a marriage work is easy. But, if you've built the right foundation from the ground up, with God being in the center of your relationship, then you have the best help in your team you can ever ask for.
