Be Humble Enough to Laugh

My wife and I had an argument in the middle of the night. We were both dreaming and then we both started to talk in our sleep- actually more like half asleep. She was dreaming about braiding a strap for one of her projects and I was dreaming about laying cement block. Suddenly she said out loud to use the strap. Since I did not think that a strap should be used on the block, I told her so. I then woke up enough to realize she had been talking in her sleep while still not understanding that I had been doing the same myself.

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We both began to drift back to sleep, but then I decided to roll from my back onto my side. Suddenly she warned, “be careful!”. Thinking I may have accidentally pulled her hair I asked what was wrong. The response, “You are going to knock them over.” Realizing she was talking in her sleep again, I chuckled and said that at least they would fall on the bed. She then told me not to be so sarcastic.

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The scripture says in Ephesians 4:26 not to let the sun go down upon your wrath. Well the sun had not even come up yet, so I figure it was okay that I just let her fall back to sleep even though she seemed to be upset with me.

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The next day I asked her if she remembered our conversation from the middle of the night. She did and she also began to laugh. I knew then that there was no worry about her going to bed angry.

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As funny as all this sounds, the tension between Crystal and I was very real during our argument even though we were not fully awake. Other times it has been just as real when we have been awake. Any time two people spend a lot of time together it should not surprise us that disagreements and even anger will result. Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”

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Sometimes I am the one who sins and causes the tension. Sometimes it is Crystal. Often it is both of us. Sometimes we just misunderstand each other.

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So how do we go to bed at night without being mad after something has caused tension between us? The answer is to set aside pride. If I am the one who sinned, I have to swallow my pride and admit it. If she is the one who sinned, I have to set aside my pride and forgive her. If it was a misunderstanding, then each of us has to be humble enough to admit that we did not grasp what was going on. Proverbs 13:10 affirms, “Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.”

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James 4:1 states, “Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?” (NKJV) Why do we fight to get our pleasures? Because we are so proud that we think that what we want is the most important thing. In order to get along with each other, we need to humble ourselves.

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After our middle of the night fight, Crystal and I were both able to look at ourselves and laugh. Essentially we were humble enough to see the humor instead of so arrogant that we were upset with each other. May we all set aside our pride so that we get along with each other.