Growing up as an outdoors-woman, I have felt competent starting fires and backpacking in the woods.
One weekend while camping with my husband, I made a resolution to let him be the leader—physically and spiritually.
The first opportunity for me to step back was during a simple task: where to hang the 10 foot long hammock. I asked his opinion on which two trees we should use and he picked two trees 50 feet apart. In my head I thought, “What in the world?” but I obliged by strapping the carabiner and rope around the tree, then he stretched the opposite end out and what do you know; the other tree was 40 feet away. I immediately said, “Let’s use these two,” and it fit snuggly.
I failed. Why did I feel the need to take over? Why do we feel that our way is best?
Ephesians 5:22 says, Wives, follow the lead of your husbands as you follow the Lord.
I realized that I first needed to pray that God give him the wisdom, and give me a humble heart. Next, I need to encourage him when he makes a choice and affirm his decisions. This next one is tricky; instead of giving my opinion, I need to ask him for his advice.
Encouraging our husbands to lead may be challenging, but it is what God asked us to do.
The fruit of a good biblically-based husband is a confident, strong, spiritually mature wife. God did not create women to simply wait on men, nor did he create men to lord over women. He made them both to complement each other through healthy relationships.
