I have been looking over some of the forum posts and all. I don't post much unless I think what I have to say is purposeful. So the purpose of this topic is to share a bit of insight that I realized a couple years ago, and see what you ladies think on the matter.
The Bible says a man is to love his wife even as Christ loves the church. Well I have read that verse about a dozen times before, when it dawned on me to REALLY think about its implication.
The church is the bride of Christ, and so, even though we brothers in Christ are men, we have that bridal role in relation to Christ as we are part of the church.
So I thought about what Christ desires from us as part of His bride.
He wants us to love Him.
He wants us to trust Him.
He wants to be our Protector, our Safe Place.
He wants us to allow Him to provide for us.
He wants our faithfulness to Him alone.
He wants us to want to pray and talk to Him.
He desires that we learn to have a mind like His.
He wants us to speak well of Him to others.
He wants us to respect Him, and He definitely deserves it.
He wants us to come to Him for help, with the big things as well as the little things.
His heart is moved by our tears; in fact the Bible says God records every one of our tears in a book.
I cannot speak for all men but I believe most christian men would have those desires. I sure do.
So lets switch our angle of view and take another look, but from a husband/wife point of view.
I would want her to love me.
I would want her to trust me.
I want to be her protector, her safe place.
I want her to allow me to provide for her.
I want her faithfulness to me.
I want her to want to talk to me.
I desire that her and I would grow to be like-minded.
I want her to speak well of me to others.
I want her to respect me, although I wouldn't always deserve it.
I want her to come to me for help, with the big things (issues in life) as well as the little things (doing stuff for her).
And lastly, any man's heart ought to be moved by the tears of his wife. If it ain't, somethin's wrong.
As you can see, this is a short list, but I'm sure you all can think of a lot more examples to post if you ponder it.
Well, That's my 2 cents worth. Hope it was a blessing.
The above scenario could apply to a job or raise someone may be desiring - as temporary stewards, how have we managed our finances before the Lord?
It could apply to having children....as in the life of Hannah - do we desire to have children "for" the Lord, or does our desire mostly have to do with us and what we would like?
It could apply to being healed from any number of physical and or emotional ailments....as in the life of Job.
And it definitely has to do with marriage...again, do we desire marriage "for and unto" the Lord, in order that His will and commission to all mankind be accomplished on earth? Or does our desire mostly have to do with us and what we would like?
I think we have to be careful to not compromise our faith and beliefs when looking for a mate. At least I found this to be true for me. We must first please God... "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you"
I'm on another secular dating site and everyone who sends a flirt, I send them the plan of salvation, because I believe if they get saved, God will bring them or guide them to the right mate, or even restore a broken marriage/relationship whatever the case may be. I have not received any replies, but that's ok, I'd rather please God than man. If I wanted to please man, I would probably be compromising pleasing God. That's why I have to get my priorities in line so I don't fall into temptation and that would give the enemy a foothold into my life.
Yes, I have been guilty, quite frequently, of not giving God all that He is due. I could say that I always give God the glory He deserves, but um, then you might not want to sit to close to me because you never know what might happen next.
