Altrogge Family

I have recently been reading a book entitled Spurgeon: A New Biography, by Arnold Dallimore. While Charles Spurgeon's pursuit of the Lord is inspiring, I have also been encouraged by Susannah Spurgeon's example.

When Charles was married at age twenty-two, he was pastoring a church of over two-thousand people, visiting distant churches to preach and writing his first book. I thought our life was busy. Theirs was in a whole other realm of busy. With Charles speaking, traveling and writing so often, I am sure he often returned home to his wife exhausted. He was probably mentally drained from all the preparation for sermons and writing. He was probably physically drained from speaking and traveling. Dallimore said,

"He frequently returned home utterly exhausted, but invariably found loving arms awaiting him amid every possible kindness and comfort."

When Stephen comes home from work, a meeting at church, reaching out to an unsaved friend or spending time with the guys, he is often tired, mentally and physically (always loving and sensitive to me, though). Here is a perfect opportunity for me to welcome him in the door with loving arms and every possible kindness and comfort.

I often give into the temptation to withhold kindness. I must recognize why I am not extending kindness. Am I bitter that he had meetings at Starbucks or does not have energy to do something with me. Am I angry that he spent time with the guys or playing video games? I must fly to the Savior in these moments, to repent of anything that causes me to withhold kindness from Stephen.

Please pray with me, that the Lord would help us grow in loving our husbands this way. If kindness were always "felt," then Scripture would not command wives to be kind to their husbands (Titus 2:5). I want to invariably, or consistently, extend loving arms and show tons of kindness toward Stephen. I want to repent of the sin that hinders me from being kind to my husband when he returns home. I want the same to be said of me, that was of Susannah Spurgeon.