I was working as the high ropes course instructor at Camp Carl, sharing Jesus' love and grace with the campers in whatever way I could find. It was the summer I surrendered the area of dating to the One Who is Three in One. The One Who gave me the desire for intimate relationship in the first place. As a result of that surrender, I broke up with my boyfriend, despite my ever-increasing longing for a husband, and the engagement ring we had gone to look at so I could try it on. It was one sunny afternoon that very same summer that I heard it for the first time . . . "Your beauty should . . . be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." (I Peter 3:3-4, NIV)
I had read that passage of Scripture before. But this was the first time I really heard it. "Unfading beauty." "Great worth in God's sight." My heart found a new longing that day.
That passage of Scripture in first Peter 3 talks about how to be a wife. More specifically, verses 1 and 2 say that this kind of inner beauty would be so attractive that it could very possibly win a husband to Christ, if he were not already a believer.
"There are husbands who, indifferent as they are to any words about God, will be captivated by your life of holy beauty." (I Peter 3:1-2, msg)
Clearly, I was hooked. Hello, unfading beauty?!? I mean, here I had God's secret for not only attracting an amazing man of God but, even more than that, for keeping him attracted.
And that, my dear friends is when I decided to unwaveringly entrust the rest of my life's dating relationships to God Himself.
It's also when I began praying for my future husband, the very same year that my husband (of now almost 14 years) surrendered his life to Jesus Christ!
Over the next few weeks, I plan to study this Scripture more in depth. I expect that God has pretty pointed things to say about our vigilance as wives. So I hope you'll join me.
In fact, I hope you'll join me today in thinking through what it means to be a vigilant wife. Link up here. Or leave a comment. Please?
2 comments:
What an amazing testimony! I know it was when I surrendered this area of my life FULLY that God gave me a hope of being a Godly wife to a Godly man. I'm amazed at how He is fulfilling this hope.
Hi Bria! This is the SECOND time this week that I read that verse about inner beauty and a quiet spirit. My husband ran over MY dog on Saturday by accident, and although I knew that it was an accident, it took me more than a day to forgive him. :( Alley (my dog) has been with us since we got engaged so she's a part of the family, so I'm brokenhearted. So, as I read this blog, it's reminding me about this "quiet spirit". Thank you.
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