I am the husband to my wonderful wife of 27 years, Donna. Father of three children. Minister for the South 11th and Willis Church of Christ in Abilene, Texas.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Defining Submission
In the book, Spiritual Disciplines Handbook, Adele Calhoun describes Submission as aligning one's will and freedoms with God's will and freedoms. How does that definition change/reinforce your perception of submission?
It makes submission less of a duty and more of a mindset and even a joy. If I'm aligning my will with God's, that means that in those situations when I need to submit, it will be my will to do just that - so it's never really done grudgingly. Very different from my perception growing up as I watched some bitter doormat wives.
Thanks Katherine; you see I finally posted again. I would love for submission to be less duty, more joy, but I have a difficult time thinking of a time when that has been true - even though afterwards I may feel a sense of reward and even anticipate that feeling.
What do you think: If I believe that God's way is right and submit to it and to my wife, friends, children, etc. in a godly way, though I don't enjoy it or understand the blessing of it, will that submission change (transform) me? Will I, by practice, eventually come to love or appreciate submission as a virtue that brings blessing?
Very different from my own upbringing, which was pretty patriarchal.
Don said: "If I believe that God's way is right and submit to it and to my wife, friends, children, etc. in a godly way, though I don't enjoy it or understand the blessing of it, will that submission change (transform) me? Will I, by practice, eventually come to love or appreciate submission as a virtue that brings blessing?"
Not always. I've watched one woman very close to me practice submission because she thinks it's God's will, though she doesn't enjoy or see the blessing of it. The current result is a joy-less woman with very little respect for her spouse. It's also no fun for her to submit to me because the look in her eyes is life-less when she does. She's not mean about submitting, but it's very obvious that she does it out of duty, which does not make the recipient feel respected or loved. At the age of 60, this is what I see, and I really can't imagine anything changing for her at the current rate.
I'm a firm believer of "fake it til you make it," but I don't want to fake it til I'm bitter.
Every time I think I understand the Father, he reminds me how different I am from him. Every time I am made to feel so different, he touches me with his Spirit and the grace of Jesus to remind me how near we are to him.
3 comments:
It makes submission less of a duty and more of a mindset and even a joy. If I'm aligning my will with God's, that means that in those situations when I need to submit, it will be my will to do just that - so it's never really done grudgingly. Very different from my perception growing up as I watched some bitter doormat wives.
Thanks Katherine; you see I finally posted again. I would love for submission to be less duty, more joy, but I have a difficult time thinking of a time when that has been true - even though afterwards I may feel a sense of reward and even anticipate that feeling.
What do you think: If I believe that God's way is right and submit to it and to my wife, friends, children, etc. in a godly way, though I don't enjoy it or understand the blessing of it, will that submission change (transform) me? Will I, by practice, eventually come to love or appreciate submission as a virtue that brings blessing?
Very different from my own upbringing, which was pretty patriarchal.
Don said: "If I believe that God's way is right and submit to it and to my wife, friends, children, etc. in a godly way, though I don't enjoy it or understand the blessing of it, will that submission change (transform) me? Will I, by practice, eventually come to love or appreciate submission as a virtue that brings blessing?"
Not always. I've watched one woman very close to me practice submission because she thinks it's God's will, though she doesn't enjoy or see the blessing of it. The current result is a joy-less woman with very little respect for her spouse. It's also no fun for her to submit to me because the look in her eyes is life-less when she does. She's not mean about submitting, but it's very obvious that she does it out of duty, which does not make the recipient feel respected or loved. At the age of 60, this is what I see, and I really can't imagine anything changing for her at the current rate.
I'm a firm believer of "fake it til you make it," but I don't want to fake it til I'm bitter.
Post a Comment