Q: “I am in a very difficult marriage. The Bible and my church leaders tell me I’m supposed to Ephesians 5:33 How do I do this even though he…?”
Several years ago, I had the opportunity to attend the Willow Creek Leadership Summit when Senior Pastor Bill Hybels interviewed former President Bill Clinton in-person. There was a ton of controversy over Willow’s decision to invite President Clinton and I even had my share of internal conflicts. His infidelities had not yet faded from our collective memories and I didn’t know what the point would be of parading him in front of an audience of mainly conservative church leaders (except that he is known for his stellar leadership abilities and, you know, it was a leadership conference). Though I didn’t vote for him and though I couldn’t bring myself to fully respect him as a man for the dishonor he brought to the office and to his family, when he entered the room, I found myself standing and applauding, along with pretty much every other conservative church leader in that packed-out auditorium (I was even interviewed for NBC News and said something very, very blonde…awesome).
Why did I stand and applaud? Because he used to be the President of the United States. That’s huge. I was compelled to stand to my feet and show reverence for the role, if not for the man.
The role of husband as head of the household is also huge. The weight on the shoulders of men to gently lead their families to serve and honor God is heavy, and I believe they will be held to a higher standard before God for the successes or failures of their families. Totally scary. The role, if not always the man, deserves respect.
But what do you do if the man you are supposed to respect is unfaithful to you, is abusing you in any manner of ways, is addicted to something, or has emotionally checked out?
I used to say to myself that I would respect my husband when he earned it, when he loved me. But somewhere along the line, I realized that it’s not a conditional statement. God doesn’t say, “Wives, respect your husbands when they love you the way you want to be loved.” He says, “Wives, respect your husbands.”
I didn’t do this well. Like, at all. This was hands-down one of my biggest failures over the past eighteen+ years. I justified my words and actions way too often, letting myself off a hook that God hadn’t taken me off of. So, here’s what I can tell you as you grapple with living within the small spaces of a difficult marriage and trying to obey God: respect the role.
Acknowledge that being a husband is an honored role in Scripture. God isn’t up there scratching his head looking at these hard marriages of ours and thinking, “Wait…I didn’t see any of that coming when I told wives to submit…” He knew it would be difficult. In fact, if you think about it, he pretty much predicted it in Genesis 3:16 “Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”
Pray. Ask God how he wants you to do this within the context of your situation. What would honoring God look like for you? It might not look like anybody else’s marriage. And do not compare yourself to women in solid and godly marriages…that will only serve to make you feel worse about yourself and your marriage.
Show common courtesy. Sometimes, things are so broken between a husband and a wife that the best way you can respect your husband is to be kind to him. We’ve talked about this before, but show him the courtesy you would show a stranger. Use gentle words. Use fewer words. Challenge yourself to perform one act of kindness per day. For a while there, I was making a salad every night for dinner for my husband to eat whenever he came home. It was a small act but it showed me and him (and God) that I was still trying.
Know your reality. There are times when a husband can be in such a state of sin that he has abdicated his role as leader of your family. I believe you will know when that is. If your husband is asking you to do something that conflicts with Scripture, I believe you are to place God’s will over your husband’s will. I was asked once to start practicing the Sabbath on a weekday so my kids wouldn’t see me doing it, so they’d still be free to do chores on Sunday. I believed this was in violation of what God was wanting me to do for myself and as a parent, so I didn’t follow that directive. However, if what you’re being asked to do isn’t in violation with God, even if your spouse is not acting as leader with his life’s choices, I believe that with prayer and getting some wise counsel, you can freely and clearly follow what he’s asking of you, knowing that your Maker is your true husband.
Remember God’s sovereignty. I’ve mentioned this before, but it was so life-altering for me that I keep coming back to it. One time after a difficult family decision was made that I didn’t agree with and that broke my heart, I felt God remind me that if I actually felt this sad decision could thwart God’s plan for me and my family, I was giving the human decision-maker too much credit and God not enough. God’s will will prevail, regardless of who’s in human charge.
This isn’t an easy topic. It will take prayer, much thought, and getting insight from other wives (preferably those also in difficult marriages who understand the unique dynamic), but I believe God will give you a special measure of discernment and strength to do what he’s asking you to do, despite how you’re feeling or where you find yourself in your marriage.
This article appeared originally on ElisabethCorcoran.blogspot.com on September 25, 2012. Used with permission.
Elisabeth K. Corcoran is mom to Sara (15-1/2) and Jack (14). She loves spending time with her kids, her friends, reading and writing. She is the author of At the Corner of Broken & Love: Where God Meets Us in the Everyday; One Girl, Third World: One Woman’s Journey into Social Justice; He Is Just That Into You: Stories of a Faithful God who Pursues, Engages, and Has No Fear of Commitment; In Search of Calm: Renewal for a Mother’s Heart; and Calm in My Chaos: Encouragement for a Mom’s Weary Soul. All these books can be purchased on Amazon.com in paperback or Kindle.
Visit her website at www.elisabethcorcoran.com and her blog.
You can follow her on Twitter at ekcorcoran or friend her on Facebook.
If you are in a difficult marriage or find yourself going through a difficult divorce, I have created two private groups on Facebook that I would like to invite you to. Simply email me at elisabethkcorcoran@gmail.com, let me know if you're interested in the married group or separated/divorced group, then send me a friend request on Facebook. If you're in need of some encouragement, I invite you to join us.
Elisabeth is a proud Member of Redbud Writers Guild.
Publication date: October 26, 2012