Yesterday at chapel, my favorite preacher (my husband, Robert) gave a great teaching on worship. His text was from John 4 (ESV):
23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
As I meditated on these verses and what worship looks like in my life, I heard the Holy Spirit speak to my heart, taking the message and personalizing it…tailoring it for me as a wife. (I love when He does that!)
He led me to this passage in Romans 12 (ESV):
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
You know, I’m pretty sure that I’ve written on this passage before, but it was highlighted to me yesterday as I heard these words:
Submission to your husband is worship to Me because it is a way of presenting your body as a living sacrifice to Me.
So, God and I had a little conversation, which went something like this:
Me: When I support Robert in a decision that I have questions about, but it’s just a matter of a difference of opinion (not sin…which is never the case in our circumstances, but here for clarification purposes), then I’m worshiping You?
God: Yes.
Me: When I put Robert first instead of my own comfort and ease…and serve him, then I’m worshiping You?
God: That’s right.
Me: When I honor Robert in front of others by keeping quiet instead of correcting him on the details, then I’m worshiping You?
God: I think you’re getting it, girl!
Me: When I do what Robert asks, even when I think it’s ridiculous (that’s my opinion….not necessarily the reality), then I’m worshiping You?
God: That’s right. Submission to your husband is worship of Me. Any time you submit to him instead of insisting on having your own way, not only are you walking in obedience, but it is an act of worship.
Now let me tell you something, sisters, that got me excited! It adds a new dimension to submission to my husband that I hadn’t seen before.
I’m all about the obedience-to-God aspect of submission…that was how the Lord got my attention in the first place. He knew that I wanted to obey Him in all things. But, I also get to offer God worship through my submission to Robert!
That means that I’ve been walking in worship to my Lord throughout my days. I am not just walking in obedience.
I’m rejoicing in that! And, believe me, the next time I am tempted to refuse to submit to Robert, I will remember that if I do, I’m withholding worship from God.
So, when you want to worship the Lord, don’t limit yourself to only songs or words of praise. You can add submission to your husband to the list of ways you can worship our wonderful God!
With love,
Rebecca
Image via http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ by soundman1024
This is good stuff. Honoring others (for example, your husband) above yourself is obedience to God and therefore worship. (I like the examples you gave, about trusting his decisions, not correcting him in public, etc.) I think a wife should submit to and love her husband, and a husband should also submit to and love his wife.
Thank you for commenting…it’s so good to hear your thoughts. Husbands should definitely be considerate of their wives and treat them with respect…partnership and joint heirs!