Hello there!!! It is in the mid 30's right now. Some of the snow is melting and there are patches of grass showing through. The wind is blowing a bit today. It is blowing a branch or something against the back of the house by the office. I thought I had a mouse in the wall. =)
We watched a video yesterday that was about Authority. It gave a very clear and precise picture of the right authority and the wrong authority. God set up a chain of command for us. He gave us all authorities to be under. When we keep under our proper authority there are protections that He affords us. God always works through His principles. We just need to figure out what they are. =) This man (I believe his name was Joe Norvell) asked a series of questions to start off this picture.
Key Questions
1. Who named Adam? - God did
2. Who named Eve? - Adam did
3. Who named their children? - Eve/Parents did
In the Chain of Authority
1. Whose authority was Adam to be under? - God's
2. Whose authority was Eve to be under? - Adam's
3. Whose authority were the children to be under? - Parent's
In the Chain of Responsibility
1. Whose authority was Adam to bring Eve under? - God's
2. Whose authority was Eve to bring the children under? - Adam's
3. Whose authority was the firstborn to bring the younger siblings under? - Parent's
Here are some distinctions to the 2 types of Authority.
Personal Authority - You are trying to bring others into submission to you, your personal agenda, desires and ideals.
Positional Authority - You are trying to bring others into submission to those over you, ultimately God, specifically to your initial authority.
He talked about how many woman see a godly family or they have an ideal in their head, and they try to bring their children under that, instead of under their father's authority. It causes lots of problems (many of which I personally can attest to). We refuse to trust God to work through our authority. Here are some outcomes...
Positional Authority
Responding to situations
Having a spirit of meekness
Having the trust of the one over you and having communication with them that brings peace.
Having strength for serving the Lord
Being an extension of your authority
Having an increased influence with your authority - In Proverbs it says the heart of her husband doth safely trust in her.
Personal Authority
Reacting to situations
Spirit of anger from desire to control
Presumption instead of trust - you start assuming things which leads to conflict.
Having weakness - you are always struggling with trying to get everyone to do it your way. You need lots of time off and you burn out easily.
You cut yourself off from your authority. It leaves you no back up.
You have a decreased influence with your authority because they can't trust you to do what you are supposed to do.
This was just such an eye opening picture for me. I see it in my own family and many of those families around me. I will talk about the wife's part in this. We as woman are not an extension of our husband's authority. Just like the submission post I made, we correct our husband or sometimes even overrule him. Then we wonder why things are not working in our home. As the man started listing the outcomes in the Personal Authority column, my husband and I kept looking at each other and smiling. Then I finally blurted out.... "OK, so I am a poster child for that column!!!" =) I didn't fit all of them, but enough to recognize myself.
God has been showing us so many things recently. Maybe because we have been looking for them like never before... However, as we keep learning these principles of God, and put them into action, we are seeing results. Not results we bring about, but things that God is doing in and around us. It is a very exciting time in our household. I just wish we did not start all of this so late in our marriage. I am really trying to help the younger women and the older girls to learn some of these before they are ruing wasted time like I am. May the Lord continue to grow us!!!
5 comments:
What a terrific lesson! I enjoyed reading that post.
You know, that's exactly why we homeschool. I know this isn't necessarily about homeschooling, but there were points that were brought up that made me think about it. Our children are our responsibility, under our God-given authority. When we give them over to another authority we can't expect God's chain of command to stay in tact!
~Kristi
Marci, I have also been the poster child for that column. :-( especially when I was first married and thought I knew it all, and that my husband would tow the line to my demands. Thankfully the Lord has brought me so far from the person I was. I am disgusted with my previous actions and am thankful my husband stuck it out with me. :-)
I have counseled women struggling with submission and I always like to point them to Abraham's wife, Sarah, because she is held up as our standard. I know I would have a hard time going along and submitting to all Abraham put her through and that helps to realize how easy we have it with our husbands today. I think it's fairly safe to assume most of our husband's claim us as their own and not as a sister these days! :-)
I do get tired of women that I know who think if you're not doing things "their family's way" then you are not godly enough. I think that causes other women to doubt their husbands and become discontent with their families.
Thanks for posting this, Marci. Us wives all need a reminder of who's authority we are under from time to time!
~Karen
P.S. Thank you for your comment. I'm really not that organized and I realized this morning my youngest will be 6 on Thursday, so he gets to choose the meal that day (within reason, of course!), so I will have to switch things around a bit.
Thank you for the reminder! =)
Hi, Marci, A very thought-provoking post. I enjoyed reading it. It is good that as we mature with age and experience, we also learn. Through God's Word we have the roadmap to Life. :)
Marci, a great and helpful post. This is my first time to visit your post. Thanks for letting me comment. Connie from Texas
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