The Trusting Heart
by Lynne Tagawa
“For
in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned
themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham,
calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid
with any terror.” (1 Pet
3:5-6)
Sarah trusted God. She also obeyed
Abraham. Is there any connection? At first we might say, Well, if I were
married to such a godly man, it would be easy to submit and treat him well.
Things would be great. This is the “if only” lie that destroys marriages. I
suspect that many of us toy with it at one point or another.
But in reality, every man, even great men
like Abraham, has feet of clay. And there’s the rub. There may come a point
where you are certain that your
husband (or father or boss) is making a mistake.
This happened to Sarah. Not once, but
twice. You see, Abraham was afraid. His wife was so beautiful that he feared
that someone would come along and kill him for her. So in two different situations
Sarah was asked to say that she was his sister. (Check out the full accounts in
Gen 12 and 20.) Problem was, in both cases she was scooped up into the ruler’s
harem.
Can you imagine? You’re married, involved
in deceit (well, she was his
half-sister), and you certainly don’t want to have happen what was inevitably
going to happen. What would you have done?
“Look, Pharaoh, it’s like this. I’m
actually married. Abraham is my half-brother and he didn’t tell the whole
truth.”
I wonder if she was tempted to blow the
lid off the deception. But as it was, something really, really amazing took
place instead. God went to bat for her. In both cases, God did not allow Sarah
to be bedded by these rulers. He plagued Pharaoh. He actually came to the other
ruler in a dream, telling him that he was a “dead man” because of Sarah.
Naturally, both men restored her to her husband and sent them off.
Sarah was affected by her husband’s
questionable decision. Did she fight it? No, although I hope she would have
drawn the line somewhere. We aren’t called upon to follow our husbands into
sin. She couldn’t sleep with either of those men, and I’ll bet she was crying
out to God. She must have felt torn, not wanted to go against her husband’s
directive and shame him publicly, but knowing she’d have to sooner or later.
But I suspect that while she may have shed
tears privately, she never had a public breakdown. Remember the last words of
the passage? She was “not afraid with any terror.”
Submitting to authority is an act of faith.
We submit to God, knowing that He is fully trustworthy and keeps His promises.
But what about human authority? It is fallible. Our husbands—or fathers or
bosses—are only human, after all, and they will make mistakes in judgment. However,
human authority is ordained by God, and unless that authority commands us to
sin, we obey, knowing that in doing so, we are obeying and honoring God.
Faith-filled obedience leads to peace, the
peace that passes all understanding. By looking to the One who does all things
well, our anxieties are calmed, and we are enabled to follow in Sarah’s
footsteps through the rocky places.
You may be facing such a crisis. Your
husband is dead-set on questionable purchases, or perhaps you have a
disagreement about the children’s schooling. You know you must submit to your
husband. But he’s wrong!
Sometimes disagreements are trivial.
Sometimes they are not, and a husband’s poor decision could lead to harm. Sarah
was brought to the very precipice. I wonder what went through her mind. But she
trusted in God and He delivered her.
Lord,
give me the grace to follow in Sarah’s footsteps. Help me to look past human
authority to You. Grant me that peace that passes all understanding in the dark
and difficult seasons of life. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Lynne Basham Tagawa is an educator, author, and
editor. The author of Sam Houston’s
Republic, (http://graceandtruthbooks.com) she lives in Texas with her husband.
- Lynne’s editing services: http://www.lynnetagawa.com
- Blog: http://gracetrails.blogspot.com
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