The Head of the Woman is the Man

It’s funny, you know, how a particular headline can grab attention. I’m guessing that some people are reading this because they like the idea of the man being the head of the woman. Others have their proverbial guns drawn.

Saying that the husband is the head of the wife is controversial in light of the modern emphasis on gender equality. The statement Paul made in 1 Corinthians 11:3 was controversial when he wrote it for a different reason – because of a lack of gender equality. You see, whether we realize it or not, Paul was arguing for balance in the marriage relationship. Let me explain…

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This Mess Called Marriage

Are you happily married? If you’re smart (and you’ve been married more than two years), you’ll realize that’s a question that depends on how things are going in the moment. Am I happily married? I am today – not sure about tomorrow. But I am securely and joyfully married.

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A Marriage Proposal – Disney Style

I figured on a Monday, you might be able to use a good smile. I couldn’t help but smile through this entire clip and ask myself… why didn’t I think of this?

By the way, this was discovered via Mashable’s 10 Most Romantic Social Media Finds.

Back to Real Purity

Another politician has fallen, along with another high-profile Pastor. Both stories come within weeks of each other. Adultery. The moral fabric of a home torn. Some marriages may survive it, though they’ll walk with a permanent limp. Others will never recover. Carnage will lie everywhere.

Not nice to think about, is it? But we’ve got to face it head-on, especially within Christianity. I’ve read lists of “commandments for purity” before, such as Ed Young’s, which he posted on his blog today. I’m thinking through my own right now and would encourage you to do the same.

Have boundaries and limits. Communicate them. Avoid secret places in your life aside from the closet of prayer. Satan loves to lurk in the dark and dusty, cobwebbed corners of our souls. He kicks up dirt where we’ve refused to purify ourselves.

Guard the eyes – the gateway to the mind. Guard the mind – the gateway to the heart. And guard the heart- the gateway to the soul.

Don’t fall into legalism, that life in which living by your own rules overtakes your intimate walk with God. But have the guts to have some standards and to live by them.

May we salvage what is left of the reputation of Christ-followers, and may our families, children, and churches be preserved and revived. Let’s get pure!

photo credit: Olly M Pus

Today Is Brought To You by the Number 12

On June 14, 1997, I woke up excited. I got dressed and drove to Scottsville Road Baptist Church and sat in the parking lot for a long time. My bride was inside wondering if I was sitting outside having second thoughts. I was really just thinking about how I was going to get through the rain and into the building without seeing her. The rain stopped. I made it inside. The day was awesome!!

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If Your Spouse Doesn’t Love You

I said a couple of days ago, and in our midweek Bible study, that one of the hardest things I deal with is not being able to help or repair broken situations. It’s not in me, but it is in the power of God to do so. Nonetheless, there are times I face a question I just can’t answer for one who is suffering, and this one is common, “My spouse doesn’t love me.”

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In Hot Pursuit of the Love of My Life

When I was in high school, dating was popular. Okay, it’s always been popular. I dated… or at least I went on a few dates. There arose here and there those opportunities to ask a girl to go out, and I had a few first and even second and third dates here and there. But I never felt motivated to pursue any of those potential relationships until I met Angie Kirk. Everything changed.

I remember meeting Angie for the first time. We sat in a classroom full of old computers by ourselves talking (I don’t have any idea where we were supposed to be. We talked and talked. Soon we did a double-date with a couple of friends and watched the classic Cool Runnings. And that was it. She was kind of done… or so she thought.

I called her repeatedly and we would talk for great lengths of time. I somehow managed to convince her Mom and Dad I was a good guy, so her Mom’s persuasive abilities came into play as well, encouraging her daughter to “give this guy another shot.” I groveled, begged, and conned Angie into another date on January 5, 1995. The rest is history, and I’d do it all over again!! Why? She was worth pursuing, and still is.

I married a woman of excellence, and I’m proud of her. She dresses the part. She’s graceful, elegant, cute, funny, stylish, encouraging, and beautiful. She cares. She loves. She serves. She laughs. She’s awesome. I pursue her still!

Now Angie and I find ourselves immersed together in lives that are at times, busy, crazy, and hectic. We’ve been praying for a second (or more) child for over five years. We’ve been through an ectopic pregnancy and miscarriage, and surgery that we were hopeful would help the situation. Through it all, I’m so glad we get to find ourselves in each other’s arms. I would not want to live life any other way. Angie, you are so worth the chase!

Angie Cox Is A Blogger

Well, the cat is out of the bag. My wife, Angie, is now a blogger! You can check her out over at AngieRCox.com. She’ll be blogging periodically about family, life, church, and our struggle with infertility. Drop her a note, she’d love to hear from you!

Also check out my father-in-law’s blog (he needs to post) at DannyRKirk.com and our friends, Jeff and Terri Chadd.

Fireproof Your Marriage

Go here: http://fireproofmymarriage.com/. See this movie!

For whatever reason, it seems God has brought couples into our lives that need marriage help. In fact, it’s epidemic today. For every one of them, I recommend seeing this movie. In fact, I think everyone should see it. It has multiple presentations of the gospel in a very accurate way. It addresses pornography, emotional coldness, the threat of divorce, and the restoration of a marriage the hard and real way, not the syruppy, sappy way Hollywood presents it.

Go.

Fireproof Your Marriage

Every couple ought to go see this movie. Marriage brings out the best and worst in us, and I watch Satan driving wedges between husbands and wives on an almost daily basis. But your marriage is worth fighting for.

Fireproof Trailer from Steven St. Clair on Vimeo.