HOW TO APOLOGIZE AND EXTINGUISH THE FLAMES OF CONFLICT IN YOUR HOME.
You and your spouse have just had an argument. I do not need to apologize, you tell yourself. I am not the one who started it. You drop the issue, but the tension lingers. You reconsider apologizing, but you cannot bring yourself to say those simple words, "I'm sorry".
Keep your pride and save your family. sometimes it is hard to say I am sorry because my ego gets in the way" admits a husband named Peter. Inordinate pride can make you too embarrassed to acknowledge your share of the blame.
You may think that an apology is in order only if you are responsible for the problem. A wife named Mary says, "When I know I am hundred percent at fault, it is easy to say I am sorry. But when we both said things we regret, it is difficult. I mean , why should I apologize if both of us messed up?
You might feel even more justified if you feel that what happened was entirely your spouse's fault. "When you genuinely believe that you haven't done anything wrong says a husband called Samuel,"Withholding an apology becomes a way of declaring your innocence".
To keep your home happy, try to practice the following:
1. True, apologizing may be difficult if you are not fully to blame. But your spouse faults do not excuse bad behavior on your part. so do not hesitate to apologize, thinking that the passing of time will cover over the offense. Your apologizing can make it easier for your spouse to apologize too. and the more you practice apologizing, the easier it will become for you.
2. Remember your marriage. View an apology, not as a defeat for you, but as a victory for your marriage. After all, a person who remains offended is " more unyielding than a fortified city, "says Proverbs 18:19. It is difficult, if not impossible, to restore peace in such a defensive atmosphere. On the other hand , when you apologize you prevent the offense from becoming a barrier. In essence, you put your marriage ahead of yourself.
MARRIAGE QUOTE.
"An apology can transform your marriage from one where problems linger and create tension to one where problems are small bumps in the road. Apologies give you the chance to prove your love for each other".
Happy Married Life.
Your Attention
I am so guilty of this. My wife says something and my body language acknowledges it, but it doesn’t sink in. Shame on me. Instead of burying myself in thought, the paper, or even the Bible, I need to look my wife straight in the eyes and give her my full attention. She might not want me to solve whatever she is talking about, but she does want me to listen. It is so disrespectful when someone says something to you and you don’t even acknowledge what they said by words or by nodding your head. Men, are you really listening to your wife? Could you repeat the last sentence she said? Drop whatever it is you had going on, including the remote if necessary, and stop, look, and listen. She deserves your attention, don’t you think?
Your Faithfulness
Surely, we husbands need to remain faithful to our wives. That is clearly commanded in Scripture. By remaining faithful to her, I mean not only avoiding adultery and pornography but avoiding commenting about other husband’s wives or looking at other women with lust. Men can so easily commit adultery of the heart. It’s like we’re hardwired that way, but we are supposed to be new creations in Christ, as Paul wrote, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Cor. 5:17). When we are born again, we are given a new nature, as Ezekiel wrote, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you” (Ezek. 36:26a), and as such, we were “buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life
Conclusion
Conclusion
Obviously, there are a lot more than three things a wife needs that are not listed here, but surely we recognize that we need to love our wives as Christ loved the church. That means a life-sacrificing life of serving her. We need to give her our full attention when she is talking, and we need to be ever faithful to our bride, for she is a gift of God. We should treat her as such.