Dear Reader, have you ever been scolded by Jesus? It totally sucks at first, but over all, it is a good thing! Oh yes ... on that fateful night many years ago, Jesus verbally scolded me, when my darling was getting on my last nerve. Ladies, you know what I mean, right? He thought he was being funny, or he was trying to get me out of my funk, but I wasn't amused. If there are any men reading this, here is a little tip for ya: Women don't like being teased like they are your guy friends, okay? Anyway, I have since forgotten what we were talking about, or what I was so upset about. But I do remember that I was standing in our kitchen feeling spiritually superior [a toxic by-product of Word of Faith teachings] with my arms folded across my seething chest: I was about to explode!
When all of the sudden, I heard this audible stern voice shout in my ears - "YOU are BLOWING IT!" Pardon me...but I still get a little emotional when I think about it... Okay, where was I? Oh yeah... I felt my eyes get as big as saucers and I ran out of the kitchen to our bedroom and shut the door. Poor Robert, what he must have thought. Sitting on our bed I audibly asked, "What do you mean - I'm blowing it?" He didn't say another word - he didn't have to, deep down I knew exactly what he meant. My husband was NOT my problem, I was my problem. So, I had some choices to make right then, and there. I could pretend I didn't hear him, or I could rebuke and bind that voice that was contrary to my will, or I could actually do something about my problem, meaning I could change my attitude and behavior.
Again, Word of Faith does teach this sort of thing, that you should submit to authority, but their goal is to make you submit to their usurped authority, not to Jesus' authority, like they claim. They even encourage and teach you to go above and beyond, where the first mortals dared to go on before us - to become "little gods." How did that pan out for them? Not so well. Anyway, I slowly, and I mean slowly, began to see that it was not Robert's job to make me happy. I mean really, who needs that kind of pressure? God made me to be his helper, not the other way around. Yes, a husband should treat his wife with kindness and tender care, but he is not meant to be the wife's servant, rather he should be her leader and protector. Living in the wrong role can lead to a lot of needless suffering. Yes, I was trying to be the leader of our household, a role that was not meant for a woman. The truth hurts dear reader, but once you accept it, it sets you free! This is where Genesis 3:15 comes into play. Some pastors dance around this topic, many claim Adam and Eve were equals before the fall. No they weren't. If that were true, then God would have made them at the same time, not in a succession, as Paul points out in 1 Tim. 2:13. The only thing men and women are "equal" in is that we are human beings, i.e. equal sinners and that is where the equality ends. Well, that and we share the equal opportunity of salvation, which is not based upon rank, merit, social status, gender, etc.
That was only the beginning of the long and difficult journey that lay ahead of me. The Lord was right, I was my own worst enemy. I was blowing it, and I can see that now. There were many times Jesus wanted to show me more truths about all of the false teachings I had planted in the garden of my heart, but at that time, I still refused to see most of them. I just wasn't ready to admit I was wrong, completely wrong, because the bait of power that the Word of Faith uses is very seductive. And so, Jesus put me back into the fire of trials and tribulations, until I was more pliable and yielding. The Almighty knows just how much heat to apply, and how much force to use, as he is forging and sculpting his children into perfection, or maturity, without breaking, or damaging us - he is a master craftsman! Oh, how I love Him!
When all of the sudden, I heard this audible stern voice shout in my ears - "YOU are BLOWING IT!" Pardon me...but I still get a little emotional when I think about it... Okay, where was I? Oh yeah... I felt my eyes get as big as saucers and I ran out of the kitchen to our bedroom and shut the door. Poor Robert, what he must have thought. Sitting on our bed I audibly asked, "What do you mean - I'm blowing it?" He didn't say another word - he didn't have to, deep down I knew exactly what he meant. My husband was NOT my problem, I was my problem. So, I had some choices to make right then, and there. I could pretend I didn't hear him, or I could rebuke and bind that voice that was contrary to my will, or I could actually do something about my problem, meaning I could change my attitude and behavior.
Again, Word of Faith does teach this sort of thing, that you should submit to authority, but their goal is to make you submit to their usurped authority, not to Jesus' authority, like they claim. They even encourage and teach you to go above and beyond, where the first mortals dared to go on before us - to become "little gods." How did that pan out for them? Not so well. Anyway, I slowly, and I mean slowly, began to see that it was not Robert's job to make me happy. I mean really, who needs that kind of pressure? God made me to be his helper, not the other way around. Yes, a husband should treat his wife with kindness and tender care, but he is not meant to be the wife's servant, rather he should be her leader and protector. Living in the wrong role can lead to a lot of needless suffering. Yes, I was trying to be the leader of our household, a role that was not meant for a woman. The truth hurts dear reader, but once you accept it, it sets you free! This is where Genesis 3:15 comes into play. Some pastors dance around this topic, many claim Adam and Eve were equals before the fall. No they weren't. If that were true, then God would have made them at the same time, not in a succession, as Paul points out in 1 Tim. 2:13. The only thing men and women are "equal" in is that we are human beings, i.e. equal sinners and that is where the equality ends. Well, that and we share the equal opportunity of salvation, which is not based upon rank, merit, social status, gender, etc.
That was only the beginning of the long and difficult journey that lay ahead of me. The Lord was right, I was my own worst enemy. I was blowing it, and I can see that now. There were many times Jesus wanted to show me more truths about all of the false teachings I had planted in the garden of my heart, but at that time, I still refused to see most of them. I just wasn't ready to admit I was wrong, completely wrong, because the bait of power that the Word of Faith uses is very seductive. And so, Jesus put me back into the fire of trials and tribulations, until I was more pliable and yielding. The Almighty knows just how much heat to apply, and how much force to use, as he is forging and sculpting his children into perfection, or maturity, without breaking, or damaging us - he is a master craftsman! Oh, how I love Him!