I hope you are enjoying your Christmas season, and especially today, the day we celebrate the birth of Christ. It’s always important to understand and remember the true reason for this season of the year. I think it’s also important to remember how the life of Christ impacted our family structure and the family as a unit.
Husbands, Love Your Wives
I believe the foundation of the family starts with Ephesians 5:25. Loving your wife is the most important thing you can do as a husband. Love in our marriage means many things. Love is kindness and selflessness.
Love is being willing to truly put your wife first and sacrifice for her, just as Christ did for his “bride” (the church). I would add that an important part of loving your wife is to honor and esteem her above ALL others. When you love her like this, you reflect the example Christ set for us.
Wives, Submit Yourselves to Your Own Husbands
Submission in marriage is not a dirty word, contrary to popular opinion. One scripture rarely mentioned after Ephesians 22 is the explanation of the context, in Ephesians 24: Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
Submitting in marriage is one of the most important things a wife can do. Wives with the ability to submit to their husbands are showing they support their husbands, they believe in them and they have their back.
Submission is agreeing to being part of the team, while working and growing together. The mutual respect in healthy marriages actually shows submission by both parties, a selfless husband and a submissive wife.
Honor Your Father and Mother
In our culture, the instruction of honoring one’s father and mother and obeying parents almost goes without saying. It’s worth pointing out that parenthood is reflective of the relationship we have with our Heavenly Father.
We come to Him with our troubles, we come to Him with expectation and we come to Him for mercy…and favor. Our children have the same expectation of us. Show your children mercy and grace just as we are shown on a daily basis from our Creator.
Scripture is full of other information for the foundation of our marriages and family. If we take these lessons and use them to our advantage, I know we will have happier, healthier families going forward.
Christ didn’t come that we may have life and accept whatever hand we are dealt. Christ came so that we may have life and have it more abundantly.
In marriage, that means to enjoy each other’s company. Listen to each other. Go out and have a good time together. Regardless of circumstances, make it a point to develop and grow in the abundance of a marriage to the person who honored you enough to share their life with you.
BMWK, I hope you are your family are blessed in this season and in the New Year to come!