Key Bible Verse: "How beautiful you are, my beloved, how beautiful! Your eyes are soft like doves" (Song of Songs 1:15). Bonus Reading: Song of Songs 2:2; 4:1-5

Your wife may appear self-assured, but she's silently asking, "Am I beautiful?" And you'll decide her haunting question. Because it's really, "Am I beautiful to him?" In a culture that bombards women with expectations of losing weight and looking perfect, that question has killer consequences. But it gives clued-in men a chance to affirm their wives in a very important way.

One wife said that if she asked at the beginning of an evening out how she looked, her husband typically said, "You look fine, sweetheart." But as she put it, "I worked this hard for fine?" Her husband misunderstood the real question. She wasn't wondering, Do I look presentable? but Am I still rocking his world—like on our first date? So "fine" told her, "No, you're not wowing me."

It doesn't matter how long you've been together, or how old or young she is. Even if a woman knows in her head that her husband finds her beautiful, she still needs to hear it—often. Just think of a few affirming words—"You look beautiful today" (or your version thereof)—and say them. That kind of compliment might not feel natural at first. But stick with it. It can eventually feel as familiar as "pass the remote."

—Jeff Feldhahn in For Men Only

My Response: I'll make my woman's day by telling her …

Thought to Apply: Women want: To be loved, to be listened to, to be desired, and sometimes, just to be held. Men want: Tickets for the World Series.—DAVE BARRY

Adapted from For Men Only (Multnomah, 2006) by permission.

Prayer for the Week

Lord, You designed male and female to complement each other. Help me mesh with Your design.

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