Submission, It's Not for the Weak!

Perhaps one of the most feared, hated words in society today is the word submit.

Often times this word is misconstrued or used improperly. Because of this, both Christian and secular women avoid it like the plague.

We women want to be known for our independence, our intelligence and our ability to do anything a man can do, only better. Submission throws a well-aimed road block in our well thought out road map which wasn’t part of the travel plan.

I say it’s time to take another look at submission. Not in the negative light this word so often gets, but in the light in which it was meant. A light that reveals a woman’s strength, not her weakness, a light that exposes her for her intelligence, her independence and her abilities.

First off, let me tell you that every woman struggles with submission. It is not only the baby Christians, or the young Christians. Regardless of your age in Christ, at times you struggle with submission. Therefore it is with a grinning heart that I admit every time I would think about writing this post, my husband would do something to make me question my sanity. (Or at least my ability to acquiesce to the idea of submitting to that man.)

I remember well the first time this word was brought up in my marriage, well it was actually a word that is sometimes substituted for submit. It was the day of our wedding. We were standing at the altar, hand in hand, facing one another. Excited and encouraged, we willingly repeated the words that our pastor asked us to repeat. We were vowing our love and allegiance to one another. That is until our pastor threw the word obey in without telling me. You should have seen my head jerk. Pastor Rod was grinning ear to ear. I gave him a dirty look, crossed my toes and repeated the horrible word.

To this day when my husband reminds me of my vow, I tell him that part didn’t count cause it was sneaky and low down. I also remind him I had my toes crossed and I will not obey him. Submit, yes, but obey, no.

And that brings us to the heart of the submission.

A mature woman of God will submit to her husband.

What does that mean?

Let me tell you what it does not mean. It does not make you a doormat, or a punching bag. It does not mean you are of less value than your husband. It does not mean that all men are better than you, or that you need to submit to every man who walks the earth. It does not mean you are less intelligent or lacking in ability.

In our home this is what submission means. My husband and I have a partnership. We work together. We play together. We respect one another. He loves me. I love him. I respect his opinion and know that his ways of looking at things often vary greatly from my own. I respect him enough, and value his opinion enough that I willing ask him his thoughts. I want to know what he is thinking.

When I write a book, I will not publish until he has had a chance to read it and tell me what he thinks. Is this because he is a better writer than I? No. It’s because I value him so much, I want him to be a part of everything I do. He completes me.

Submission is not a bad thing. In fact, it’s a good thing and mature women of God know that submitting does not diminish their relevance. In fact, submitting elevates a woman and shows her strength and self control.

Are you a mature woman of God?