Don’t Let Bitterness Choke Out Your Marriage
"Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them." - Colossians 3:19
Bitterness is not something that usually shows up loud. It starts small. A sharp word that goes unaddressed. A disappointment that gets stuffed down. A grudge that quietly takes root. But if it's not dealt with, it grows fast, like kudzu on a Georgia backroad. What starts as a vine can quickly take over the whole yard.
Paul’s warning is specific. Do not be harsh with your wife. But behind that warning is a deeper principle. Harshness often grows where bitterness is hiding. When you don’t deal with what’s bothering you, when things stay buried instead of being brought into the light, love starts to suffocate.
You can’t love well while holding on to resentment, and you can’t lead gently while nursing offense. And over time, bitterness will poison the whole atmosphere of your home. It will show up in your tone, in your distance, in how quickly you lose patience or shut down.
The way of Jesus is different. Real love doesn’t avoid hard conversations. It speaks the truth in love. It forgives fully and quickly. It remembers that your spouse is not your enemy, but your teammate. And when something threatens the connection between you, love doesn’t ignore it. Love goes after it. Love fights for peace.
Maybe it’s time to check your heart. Has something small been growing under the surface? Is there a root of bitterness taking hold in your marriage or in any other close relationship? Pull it up before it spreads. Get honest. Get humble. Get help if you need it.
Bitterness may feel justified in the moment, but it never leads you closer to Jesus. Choose love. Choose grace. Choose to fight for your marriage by refusing to let bitterness win. The harvest of healing always starts with a single seed of humility.
Bitterness is not something that usually shows up loud. It starts small. A sharp word that goes unaddressed. A disappointment that gets stuffed down. A grudge that quietly takes root. But if it's not dealt with, it grows fast, like kudzu on a Georgia backroad. What starts as a vine can quickly take over the whole yard.
Paul’s warning is specific. Do not be harsh with your wife. But behind that warning is a deeper principle. Harshness often grows where bitterness is hiding. When you don’t deal with what’s bothering you, when things stay buried instead of being brought into the light, love starts to suffocate.
You can’t love well while holding on to resentment, and you can’t lead gently while nursing offense. And over time, bitterness will poison the whole atmosphere of your home. It will show up in your tone, in your distance, in how quickly you lose patience or shut down.
The way of Jesus is different. Real love doesn’t avoid hard conversations. It speaks the truth in love. It forgives fully and quickly. It remembers that your spouse is not your enemy, but your teammate. And when something threatens the connection between you, love doesn’t ignore it. Love goes after it. Love fights for peace.
Maybe it’s time to check your heart. Has something small been growing under the surface? Is there a root of bitterness taking hold in your marriage or in any other close relationship? Pull it up before it spreads. Get honest. Get humble. Get help if you need it.
Bitterness may feel justified in the moment, but it never leads you closer to Jesus. Choose love. Choose grace. Choose to fight for your marriage by refusing to let bitterness win. The harvest of healing always starts with a single seed of humility.
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