I realized something...I left out a key part to this message! Yikes! We don't get to choose our husband's behavior! Now, if ever there should be a loop hole, this is it! We don't get to only submit and revere our husbands out of Christ's love for us when they behave or when they reciprocate. We are called to do this no matter what their behavior. I was reading this, thinking ((dream sequence)) "wow. I am going to have such a perfect life that June Cleaver will be jealous. I will be so loving, kind and Christ-like that my sweet lovin' man will have no choice but to pamper, love, adore, shower me with expensive gifts and rub my feet..."
It could happen. Will it? Probably not. Maybe an occasional foot rub, definitely he will still love me. But pamper and showering with gifts probably won't happen immediately. True, but I don't greet him at the door in a dress and holding a martini either. Heck, I am usually pretty frazzled by the time he walks in the door so I think I'm doing good if I just greet him with a smile! I will work on that though.
Anyways, ladies, we are not responsible for their behavior and we are not to spend our lives reacting. So we put ourselves out there and submit and he acts like a butt~ then so be it. We are honoring Christ and we have to remember that. Let God do the heavy lifting. It is kinda like being being that annoying person on the customer service line that only is allowed to say good things. But if you have a ginormous complaint that needs resolution, they have to call in their manager. You get to be the schmo who is annoyingly happy and just wants to make sure you have a good experience. God gets to be the manager who fixes stuff and maybe tells you the hard truths that Mrs. Sunshine can't bring herself around to doing.
To sum it up in a few words- which I clearly have yet to do: Worry about you and your behavior. Let God bring him around if needed. It isn't your job to nag (darnit!) him, chide him (dangit!) or beat him (dadgummit!) into the perfect husband.
Awesome follow up, Leah! Interestingly enough, Tom also has the opportunity to handle me in the same manner...consequently, we both get the benefit of God's loving direction. One of our kids' friends once told Shanan he always thought of us as the Cleavers when they were growing up. ROFLOL!!!! If he only knew! I guess that's what the world sees when we stop trying to do it ourselves and let God be the "heavy hitter". Love your blog lady...keep it up!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Mo! I guess after I finished up the last one, I envisioned people saying "ya, but you don't know my husband" cuz that is what I have said! Then I realized, that the real relationship starts w/ me and God, not me and hubby. So that excuse loses some of its effectiveness when you take your man out of the equation and only look at your own behavior! Lets see if I can practice what I ...blog?
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