It's been a while since I posted on this, but I have to tell you something.
I quit ya know. I quit doing the dares.
I didn't tell anyone. No one asked.
I quit because it got too hard. I quit because the more dares I did, the more difficult things became. The more I respected, the more I felt disrespected. The more I stepped out, the more I felt stepped on. So, 13 days in and I was done.
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood,
but against principalities, against powers,
against the rulers of the darkness of this world,
against spiritual wickedness in high places."
Ephesians 6:12 (KJV)
I'm going to be completely raw with you right now. I really love Jesus. I want to shine Christ from miles away. I want Jesus infiltrating all of my days, hours, conversations, moments. God has redeemed me, given me an identity, been a Father, extended limitless grace to me through Jesus. I don't want to shut my mouth about Him. Yet, when I'm met at the front door with the aroma of unmet expectation and disappointment peppered with a blend of sadness and resentment, I just wanna run like the wind. How much longer, God? When will it change? I can't keep going like this.
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by
such a great cloud of witnesses,
let us throw off everything that hinders
and the sin that so easily entangles.
And let us run with perseverance
the race marked out for us,
fixing our eyes on Jesus,
the pioneer and perfecter of faith.
Consider him who endured such
opposition from sinners, so that
you will not grow weary and lose heart."
Hebrews 12:3
"Why don't you just leave?"
"It would break the heart of God."
"How is all that disrespect any different?"
Shortly after this conversation, my pastor challenged me to live a
story worth telling and take the first step by
starting something. So, I picked up The Respect Dare again. Let me tell you... I should have never let the enemy convince me that it was all for nothing. Obedience is NEVER all for nothing.
"Blessed are those whose ways are blameless,
who walk according to the law of the Lord.
Blessed are those who keep his statutes
and seek him with all their heart
they do no wrong
but follow his ways.
You have laid down precepts
that are to be fully obeyed."
Psalm 119:1-4
Even when it's hard, there is more peace in obedience than there is in stubborn disobedience. Seeing my husband as a soul instead of a man is changing my heart toward him. The expectation is dissolving. The sadness is fading into joy. The resentment is morphing into compassion.
"May my cry come before you, Lord;
give me understanding according to your word.
May my supplication come before you;
deliver me according to your promise."
Psalm 119:169-170
When I quit, I was also convinced this book was only for women who were married to men who loved Jesus. It isn't. It is for wives. Any wife. All wives. God didn't distribute different instructions for those who don't have spiritual leaders. In fact, just so there wasn't confusion:
"Wives, in the same way
submit yourselves to your own husbands
so that, if any of them do not believe the word,
they may be won over without words
by the behavior of their wives,
when they see the purity
and reverence of your lives."
1 Peter 3:5
If you haven't yet, check out The Respect Dare. Women of Faith is giving away five autographed copies. Go
::HERE:: to enter and even meet Nina. If you are at all like me and you struggle with respecting your spouse, you really
really need to pray about it, find out what God says about it, and if you still need some nudging, grab our own copy of The Respect Dare. Forty days of completing dares that challenge us to be the wife God called us to be.... Totally worth it.
There is even a Kindle edition!
That's my confession. I quit. The enemy weaseled its way in and tricked me, manipulated my emotions, and almost defeated me. Why wouldn't the enemy try to derail me respecting my husband? Could you imagine the powerhouse for the kingdom of God we would be as a team?! I may have been tripped, but my feet are firmly planted this time. There isn't any more room left in my heart for all that pride and self-righteousness.
Where do you stand on the respect issue? Have you tried it and felt defeated? Let's chat!
