I was recently invited to speak to a group of married women during their Mother's Day Symposium.
Based on their response, I have decided to share the presentation in a seven-series post.
INTRODUCTION
Marriage is the
bedrock of any society and God is the
Author of Marriage. Jesus and his mother were in attendance at the wedding
in Cana of Galilee where He turned water into wine. God is still at work in
marriages today.
The marriage story
begins when a man finds a wife, described as a good thing and he obtains favour
from the Lord, Prov 18:22. The woman in marriage is chosen by her husband to be
his constant companion, his friend, to be his loyal helper, the mother of his
children, the keeper of his home and so much more.
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And so, the
woman in marriage begins her journey with her husband and her God. She knows
that a threefold cord is not easily broken. Eph 4:12. Along the way, other
people join her on this journey of faith to the unknown. Her in-laws travel
along, the Lord blesses her with children, and her family are part of the
journey, so are her friends, enemies and the society. There is no end and no
graduation until death.
On this Godly journey,
she comes across many surprises – good and bad. The woman in marriage is
equipped for what life throws at her, through God’s grace and guidance.
In the beginning, God gave Eve to Adam and asked them
to till the Garden of Eden.
And so it is for
you and for me. Once we get married, we are called by God to join our husbands
to TILL THE MARRIAGE GARDEN.
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If you own a garden
and you have ever planted seeds, you know that the seed dies first, and it
faces many adversities such as rain, frost, snow, pests, birds and even human footsteps.
But through these challenges, some seeds survive and grow into strong trees
that provide rest places for the birds of the air and for humans, away from the
heat of the sun. The fertile tree bears abundant fruits to feed countless
people and animals. But other seeds fall aside because of the harsh conditions.
And so it is for marriages.
So, is your marriage fruitful? Do people come to you when they have problems?
The woman in marriage gets married
because she believes that two are better than one because they have a
better reward for their labour. Eph 4:9.
Throughout this series,
I’m going to share with you 7 attributes of the woman in marriage.
7
ATTRIBUTES OF THE WOMAN IN MARRIAGE
1. The Forgiving (Unforgiving) Woman
2. The Praying (Un-requesting) Woman
3. The Virtuous (Unrighteous) Woman
4. The Wise (Unwise) Woman
5. The Submissive (disobedient) Woman
6. The Faithful (Unfaithful) Woman
7. The Patient (Impatient) Woman
But today, I will discuss the forgiving and the unforgiving woman.
But today, I will discuss the forgiving and the unforgiving woman.
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(i) What
is Forgiveness?
Forgiveness means to pardon, to show mercy, to
tolerate and to understand. It means you release feelings of resentment and
vengeance.
The woman in
marriage is full of forgiveness because she knows her enemies. The enemy is not
your husband, in-laws or friends. Your enemies are the powers of darkness that
we wrestle against (Eph 6:12) and our flesh that seek to please itself. Rom
8:8. The woman in marriage does not seek vengeance because she fears God and
trusts the Lord when he says, vengeance is mine, I will repay. Rom 12:19.
(ii) Ask
yourself when do I need to forgive?
·
You need to forgive when you
are overcome by feelings of pain, anger, bitterness and resentment.
·
When your chest tightens at the sound of their voice.
·
When you cringe at their presence or voice.
·
Or when your flesh crawls when you are in contact.
When the woman
in marriage experiences any of these signs, she runs to the altar of
forgiveness.
(iii) Why
do I need to forgive?
·
The Lord already paid the penalty for their sin even before the
sin was committed.
·
You need to forgive others for
your sins to be forgiven. Mt 6:12. Search yourself first! We are all humans and make mistakes. The woman in
marriage knows that if she offends, she wants to be forgiven without drama or
humiliation. So she willingly offers forgiveness.
·
You don’t let the sun go down
on your anger. Eph 4:26.
(iv) What
are the signs that I have forgiven the offender?
·
When you have set aside the
anger and bitterness, as the east is far from the west.
·
And you never use the offense
against the offender.
·
You never bring up the offense.
1. (b) The
Forgiving Woman – Mary, Mother of Jesus
We have an
example in Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ who watched her son been
crucified by the Jews. On Pentecost day, those same Jews were converted just
like she was too. Mary and the others became members of the Jerusalem Church
(John 19: 25-27, Acts 1:14, Acts 2). My question to you is, what sin has your
husband, children, in-laws, family committed that you can’t forgive?
The woman in marriage learns to forgive all hurt
knowing that Christ has paid the price.
1. (c) The
Unforgiving Woman – Zeresh, Haman’s wife - Esther 5 - 8
King Ahasuerus
promoted Haman to be his second in command and the king commanded everyone to
bow down to Haman. Mordecai was a Jew and a foreigner in Shushan, and he
refused to bow down to Haman. As a result, Haman took offence, plotted to crush
the Jews and reported the matter to his beloved wife, Zeresh and to his
friends.
Listen to his
wife’s response; “Let a gallows be made,
fifty cubits high and in the morning, suggest to the king that Mordecai be
hanged on it; then go merrily with the king to the banquet.” Est 5:14.
Her response
pleased Haman. By her words, Zeresh blew up her husband’s fury. Eventually, it
was her husband who got hanged in the same gallows. And she and her household
were handed over to Queen Esther as subjects and Esther in turn, handed them
over to Mordecai to oversee. Est 8.
Dear woman, if your husband is in a position of power, when he reports a matter to you
concerning anybody, especially those of the household of faith, do not advise
him to plot evil against others, so that you don’t bring destruction to you and
your family.
The series continues next week Tuesday with The Praying Woman. Thank you for visiting.
You can listen to the presentation by clicking; The Woman in Marriage Video.
If you missed any post in the seven series, click on the links below;
Series 1 - The Forgiving Woman
Series 2 - The Praying Woman
Series 3 - The Virtuous Woman
Series 4 - The Wise Woman
series 5 - The Submissive Woman
Series - 6 The Faithful Woman
Series - 7 The Patient Woman
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| Photo is courtesy of Regalrealness.com |
You can listen to the presentation by clicking; The Woman in Marriage Video.
Series 1 - The Forgiving Woman
Series 2 - The Praying Woman
Series 3 - The Virtuous Woman
Series 4 - The Wise Woman
series 5 - The Submissive Woman
Series - 6 The Faithful Woman
Series - 7 The Patient Woman
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Please leave comments so I know you popped in.
Have a beautiful week with your loved one.
Love
Stella
Flirty & Feisty Romance
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