Learning to Become a Godly Wife

Several months ago while I was perusing Pinterest, I came across this blog post. It is titled, "Being a Godly Wife." I really liked the article and I found the writer's advice to be very timely for the stage of life that I am currently in. That article was published last July.

Then, a few days ago I was on Bloglovin' (my app that updates me on all of the blogs that I follow) and I saw that she had another post about being a submissive wife and is called, "The Submissive Wife: Guest Post Response to 'Being a Godly Wife.'" You can find it here.

As a young Christian woman and wife, I need to be constantly reminded of what my relationship with Ty is to look like, how I am instructed in God's Word to treat him and the many ways in which I need to put my own wants and desires aside and be the wife that God wants me to be. After only 13 months of marriage I can try to conclude a couple of things about the subject of marriage:

1. It is easy to let the world's definition of "marriage" and "husband" creep into your heart and mind, making it an easy task for Satan to erase God's definitions of those things from your memory. As the second article that I linked above says, the act of "submission" is sneered at in today's society - even among Christians. Pardon my personal interjection, but I do sometimes notice the lack of submissiveness as a critical issue in many marriages, homes, and even churches today. At times, it seems that when it is convenient for us, we deem it acceptable to change and re-define topics that are clearly laid out in His Holy Word. Doing what feels right to us or what makes natural sense to our mind isn't always God's Truth. Have you ever experienced that in your life? Our first instincts and "gut reactions" to issues are many times not His thoughts but are, instead, our own.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." - Isaiah 55: 8-9

Today, I am grateful that God's ways are higher than my own. I am thankful that the all-knowing and all-powerful Creator of the Universe has a plan for me. He has desires for my life. He has set forth criteria in His Word for what makes me a good wife in his eyes. (Many of which are laid out in those articles I linked above.) I am so thankful that He is a personal and loving God!

2. It is difficult to put into practice the things that I know in my heart that God desires of me. Even if I know what He desires, it is not always easy to do those things. However, I believe that it was difficult for Christ to come to earth and willingly lay down his sinless life. It was difficult for him to take on the role of a servant instead of becoming the earthly King of Kings that we know He was and is today. Philippians 2:1-8 tells us a few things that I believe apply directly to marriage (pardon my paraphrasing): Be likeminded, love the same things, be of one accord. Don't let things be handled in anger or through pride. Don't be selfish; think of others (in this case, your husband) above yourself. Be humble and obedient. "Why?" I may wonder at times (like when my husband has done something to annoy/frustrate/infuriate/anger upset me)... Because Christ, "being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (vs. 8)"

My prayer is that I would be willing to put on the mind of Christ (vs. 5), seeing as the role of the wife is paralleled with the role of His body. I pray that I would be willing to stop each day and think as He thinks, do what He would do, react like He would react. As wives, may we strive to love our husbands in the ways that He has demonstrated His love toward us.

There is no magic formula, no "quick-fix" book that you can buy. It's all trial and error, but through His grace He shows us what He desires and helps us get there. And the good news is: He wants to help you. He wants you to be the best wife, mother, friend, sister, and person that you can possibly be, through Him. What an awesome Friend and Father!