September 20: Wife Appreciation Day

 

September 20:  Wife Appreciation Day

Wife Appreciation Day is a day dedicated to giving husbands a chance to demonstrate just how much they love and appreciate their wives. It has been listed in Chase’s Calendar of Annual Events since it was first established in 1957 and has been hugely popular ever since.  Well, maybe not in every home. 

The facts speak for themselves.  Marriage is down, divorce is up.  And the number of troubled marriages that still constitute a marriage are legion.  What can we do on this day to reverse the trend?  More specifically, what can husbands do on this day?

The answer is simple:  Lead.  Husband, use your God-given authority in the marriage relationship to set the trajectory and long-term direction of your marriage.  Perhaps that sounds like “me Tarzan, you Jane” thinking.  This is precisely where God’s plan for marriage deviates dramatically from that stereotypical notion. 

Without question, the word of God makes clear that our world is built upon the foundation of reflecting the character of God Himself.  In part, that means that relationships of every kind are built upon roles—the receiving and embracing of God-given roles in society.  Just as the Trinity functions, so we were meant to function, and that means that we embrace the fact of “equal but subordinate.”  This is precisely how God exists.  All three members of the Trinity are equal in terms of their divinity, their power, their worth, and their value.  But each has voluntarily embraced different roles that makes one subordinate to the other.  The Son is subordinate to the Father in terms of their roles.  The Spirit is subordinate to the Son in the same way.

So it is in marriage.  Husbands and wives are equals in terms of their being in the image of God, their worth, and their place as co-regents over the creation.  Both are told to be subject to one another.  BUT THEIR MUTUAL SUBMISSION IS NOT IDENTICAL SUBMISSION.  There are clearly defined roles in the marriage relationship.

We are told that “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 5:23-24) 

We have opened a huge can of worms, but let’s finish for now with this fundamental truth about the role of the husband in relationship to his wife.  How are husbands to exercise their authority?  SERVICE!  That is what husbands must celebrate today and every day.  WHEN GOD GIVES AUTHORITY, HE ALWAYS EXPLAINS THAT IN TERMS OF SERVICE.  

In Luke 22 we read “ A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest.  And he (Jesus) said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors.  But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves.  Husbands, determine that from this day forward, you will live to serve your wife.  Look to the model of the greatest Husband, Jesus, in relationship to His bride, the Church.