Practicing Submission

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.  For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, His body, and is Himself its Savior.  Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.

~Ephesians 5:22-24

Let's be honest here - this is easier said than done.  Even someone who loves this teaching, such as myself, has trouble putting it into practice with consistency.  I know I need to submit to Michael, I want to submit to Michael & so honor both him & God, but I'm stubbornly independent at times.  Like a mule!

We spent Thursday evening at the couples' Bible study, & our pastor asked a nearby couple what the biggest adjustment to marriage has been for them.  If I had been asked that question, I would have replied without hesitation, "Submission."  It's hard to have a staunch opinion on how something should be done & then have to act contrary to it.  But submission doesn't happen when Michael & I are in agreement.  Submission takes place when we have differing plans & I willingly put mine aside to embrace his.

I've been convicted over the last couple of days about how far short I have fallen in this area.  So, with God's help, I'm working to do a better job of putting my convictions into practice.  I got that chance Thursday.  That morning I spent a couple of hours at the ladies' Bible study, & then headed to the grocery store for a few items.  When I made it home, my plan was to fix lunch & then bake a cake for that evening's couples' Bible study.  However, Michael had other plans.  He's built some shelves in our storage shed & wanted me to help him move some boxes out there & get things organized.  So, he asked me to go back to the store & buy a dessert.  Uncharacteristically, I happily & easily agreed with nary an argument or sour expression.  Point 1 for Chrissy!  But that's not all.  Poor sweet fella was famished by this time, so my plans for cooking lunch went out the window.  God graciously gave me another opportunity to practice submission, & I'll tell you how that worked itself out in just a second, but first let me give you some background.  Michael & I are wanting to eat healthier & lose weight, so we haven't eaten out in almost 2 weeks.   It's working, too!  We're both losing weight (of course, him more than me) & saving money to boot!  So, we're both heavily opposed to eating out.  Cue conversation.

Me:  "Okay, I have an idea, but I think you're probably going to shoot it down.  Since we're short on time, & you're so hungry, why don't I head over to Chick-fil-A?"

Michael:  "No.  We're doing really well, & I don't want to mess that up."

Me:  "It's not like we'd be eating out just because we want to; there are extenuating circumstances.  I think this is the best choice right now.  But, I'll leave it up to you.  We'll do whatever you want."

Michael:  (after some consideration)  "Okay, but what are you going to get?"

Me:  "The regular.  A number one, well done.  Although, we don't have to get the drink.  So, 2 sandwiches & fries."

Michael:  "What size fries?"

Me:  (somewhat bashfully, because I know where this is going)  "Large."

Michael:  (even though he knows he's talking to a fry addict)  "We should get medium.  We're small people.  Small people don't need large fries."

Me:  (after much consideration) "Alright.  Medium.  This submission thing sucks."  (said with a smile)

Michael:  (as I'm walking to the door)  "Have you ever had the grilled sandwiches?  We should -"

Me:  "Submission over!  I am not getting grilled!"

End result:  I came home with 2 Chick-fil-A chicken sandwiches, well done, & 2 medium fries.  You didn't honestly expect me to do the grilled ones, did you?!

Obviously, I need some more practice.  ;-)