Here's the deal. There's a lot of information out here to keep us divided. There's a lot of temptation to keep you interested. There's a lot of life happening at any given time to keep you forgetful, selfish, and simply inconsiderate. This is all a given. No man reading this can deny it. If you can't relate, you are lying or you are God himself. Either way, I ain't buying it!
In case you didn't know, this is National Women's History Month. It doesn't get much publicity, and if you're being honest with yourself, you can guess why. But I'm not here for that. Let's skip the history lesson and get to it.
Women need you. There are movements that would have us believe we don't, but we do. All of us. Why? Well let's get the obvious out of the way, reproduction. Now that the kids are to bed, we need you for SO many other reasons. We need you to be for US what we fight so hard to be for YOU. This isn't just a romantic thing. Plenty of women can satisfy their sexual itches without you. No disrespect, but this is simply some of our truths. What we can't do is REPLACE you. However, what you can't do is REPLICATE us. Some of you have mothers you've put on the back-burner. Sisters you only call when you're in trouble. Aunties who are only good for cooking and comfort. And let's not get started on the grannies. The ultimate bae to you while you're the typical bad boyfriend to her...loving her in the moment, and then in a flash, just like that, you're gone...to be seen again only when it's convenient for you.
But to those of you who are "involved" with a woman in any capacity. She's your boo. She's your bae. She's your fiance. She's your wife. This is a plea to HONOR HER. I know it's hard. She got a stank attitude for no reason. She talking crazy. She ain't cooked. Laundry sky high. Kids ain't in bed on time. And you? YOU? LOOOOONNGGINNGGG for GOOD loving! Why you gotta honor her when she ain't honoring you?? Not to mention, big booty Judy at work, slick tongue Susan at church, lap dancing Lucious at the strip club, and down for whatever Debra on the block. You got options! Lots and lots of options! Why you gotta honor her again???
I listened to a rap lyric the other day that seriously appalled me. Now to be clear, I listen to trap music. I got faith, I love God, but aye, I'm still hood, so the music draws me. The stories, the good ones, the non-cliche, genuine ones draw me in (shout out to Jeezy for all the Trap or Dies, Big Sean for Blessed and such, Kendrick for his presence, J.Cole for his existence, and Chance the Rapper for his interruption). I'm not gonna write what it said. Why? Because it doesn't serve our purpose. But, it does drive home the point that men are being raised, reared, and revered to disrespect women. If you love a woman, trust a woman, honor a woman...you're soft.
Here's the question: If you are heterosexual and male, who do you live for? The woman who will love you, honor you, bear your children? Or the other men? Your boys? Who have 5 kids, 3 baby mamas, and see less than half of their check every 2 weeks? Who have a new "bad bad" in the sheets every week, yet their lonely, empty, shallow presence comes with loud, brash, inappropriate banter that brings your mood down every time you're around them? Or the gangsta? The one who got 99 problems...she might not be one but that probation officer is!
So when it gets tough to honor your sister because she STILL beats you up (your mama said don't hit girls). When it gets hard to honor your mom because her hand is out for money. When it gets hard to honor your female boss because she's busting your balls. When it's hard to honor your daughter because her mouth is writing a check her tail can't cash, so you wanna smack her one good time. And when it gets hard to honor your baby's mother, girlfriend, fiancee, or wife because she's being a woman and life is happening around both of you, remember this:
1. God is in her. Genesis 1:27
2. She is you and you are her. Genesis 2:21-23
3. You are no greater than her, nor her any greater than you. 1 Corinthians 11:11
4. She is strong. Proverbs 31:25
5. Your unity with her strengthens God's work. Galatians 3:28
6. Your love for her helps you hear God more clearly. 1 Corinthians 14:1
7. Honoring her is a necessity. 1 Peter 3:7
Here's the truth: A man's honoring of women, the women he loves because they loved him into a man or the one he's in love with because she loved him even when he acted like less than one is what sustains him. No man comes to this earth but through the vessel God crafted in a woman. The son of God himself needed a carrier...SHE birthed him. THAT alone is worth honoring. Beyond that? Well beyond that, women are the life source of the world. Yes...we birth children, but we also encourage ambition, nurture dreams, and are the biggest cheerleaders to our sons, brothers, and hubbys. We not only birth life, but we breathe it. That said, we too need to be sustained. We need to be complimented. We need to be uplifted. We need you to recognize that God gifted you with a honey-like sweetness upon your lips, a god-like strength in your arms, and an infinite sized loved in your heart to soothe even the most stressful of our days. Your applause, your encouragement, and your hypeness keep us going! We need you to remind us of why we're here. We need you to love us...even when it's hard. We need you to speak life into us, pray growth upon us, and dream into existence the WE that we've yet to become. Without you, our sons are conflicted, our communities are broken, and our families are incomplete. With you? WITH YOU?? The possibilities are infinite. Honor us and Be Blessed. XOXO
No comments:
Post a Comment