Standing for your man

 

Take yourself back to the sitcoms of 'yesteryear' and remember the dynamics between the husband and the wife, the mother and the children, and the father and the children. Now, fast forward to today's sitcoms and you'll see a stark difference in all of these relationships as they pertain to the role of the husband and father. Husbands and fathers who used to be honored and respected are now portrayed as incompetent, requiring the child-like direction of their wives and sometimes children to make the simplest of decisions. What used to be acts of love and kind gestures towards the husband, such as preparing breakfast, packing a lunch, or pouring a cup of coffee are now portrayed as daunting tasks far above a working woman. I wonder what kind of social outrage it would cause if women were portrayed in such a manner?

My goal is not to start a debate, but rather a discussion within ourselves as Christian wives and mothers. Do we sometimes adopt this way of this thinking? Have we allowed ourselves to be influenced by media such as this or drawn into the 'husband bashing' gossip sessions at work? Most likely the answer to at least one of these question is 'yes' (I know it is for me) because we're human and we're fallible. Perhaps this is the take away thought:

Because we are fallible people, we would be foolish to think our marriage doesn't need safeguarding. After all that's what marriage is - a joining of two fallible people.

I would also like to add that not only should this love and honor be reciprocated to the wife but such an action is demanded. Ephesians 5:25 says, 'Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." Now, I realize this is not the case in many marriages and this often leads the wife to withold honor and respect from her husband; however, this should not be the case. When we honor someone in authority we are not necessarily honoring them or endorsing their behavior, but rather the position they hold. This is a good way to teach obeying authority to your children, but it simply can not be verbalized it must be dramatized - your children will follow your actions before they follow your words.

I want to encourage you that is never too late to turn your marriage around. I also want to remind you that many times you have to mindful and intentional to develop such a dynamic between you and your husband. It is against our very nature to submit and honor authority, but with the help of Christ it can be done!

In Christ,
Created for this!