Friday 5/6/2022

Good Morning everyone (at least it's morning right now). I pray you are having a great week, looking forward to being in God's house on Sunday. At this particular time in my life I'm probably busier than I ever have been. I just started a new lead pastor position, I am doing school full time, my son is getting married in just a few short weeks, and we are fostering a beautiful little girl. We have had our foster daughter for just over a year at this point. She has been a wonderful addition to our family. Just when I thought Laura and I were going to enjoy an empty nest, we decided to start all over again. At times I become overwhelmed by the responsibility on my plate. Do you ever have times when you feel as though you are living this life alone, despite having a spouse? Do you feel like you are shouldering all of the burden in your family? We all have times like this.
Col. 3:18-21
18 Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them. 20 Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart.
This may seem like a bizarre scripture for me to choose, but I'll explain why it fits my narrative today. Whenever life seems unmanageable, like you are too busy, and have too many things going on-often times this is because you are not receiving the support you need at home. I've found that life can seem out of control when one of the things mentioned in these passages are not in line with each other. Growing up, the men would love to quote Col. 3:18. Unfortunately, the same men that love vs. 18 do not truly follow vs. 19 or 21 for that matter. Husbands are to love their wives like Christ loved the church (Eph. 5:25). I do not think most men even understand what this looks like. In scripture, love is self-sacrificing, preferring the other person rather than ourselves.
Men, when our lives are crazy and seemingly out of control, take a hard look at how you are treating your wife. While it's not always the case, sometimes we do not receive the support we need because we are not loving our spouse like Christ loved the church.