Husbands, Lead!

 

Ephesians 5:23
For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.

Eph 3:15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,

2Ch 34:33 And Josiah took away all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the children of Israel, and made all that were present in Israel to serve, even to serve the LORD their God. And all his days they departed not from following the LORD, the God of their fathers.

Ps 127:1 ¶ «A Song of degrees for Solomon.» Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it:

Col 3:24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

You don’t choose your family. They are God’s gift to you.” – Desmond Tutu

As I read through these few verses, and this wonderful quote, I am reminded again, that my family, my wife, my life, are gifts from God, that I am responsible to constantly love, provide for, develop, bless, lead, empower, teach, snuggle, and walk with God with.

Today I heard Rev. Tom Leding make the statement: We were never designed to live in this world without God. In fact, the very problems that infuriate you today, may well be the problems you are called of God to solve as you cry out to God in frustration, your deliverance, and solution may well help many others to find freedom!

Serving Jesus as a husband and father in today’s generation is no small challenge, and will take a close walk with Him, humbly seeking grace, strength, wisdom, and direction as we grow through life.

Yet, husbands, we are heads of our homes, there is nothing more to say in this other than we need to man up, step up, and accept our responsibility, and walk it out in the power of God!
Here are some thoughts on leadership responsibilities:

1. Lead in family devotions. Seek ye first the kingdom is still in the book, and as a father, we need to include our wives and children in daily devotions and Bible reading. We need to be the ones to get up for church in the morning, and remain faithful in the house of the Lord.

2. Protect – Sure we need to protect our homes from home intruders, and our children from the local bullies, and drug dealers, but we also need to keep our homes safe spiritually. Monitoring internet usage, our children’s friends. Our wife should help in this, but we are required by God to set a standard of holiness, purity, and honor in our home.
3. Discipline – I have learned that 90% of my time with my children is spent loving them, playing with them, and answering their questions. Yet, if, at any point, any child directly defies my or my wife’s command, there must be instant consequences, either a time out, or the board of instruction applied to the seat of higher learning. I cannot throw this off on my wife.
   
   
4. Provide – Whether in ministry or the work-place, I need to be bringing home the bacon. In Proverbs 31 we see a godly wife contributing to household support, but we are the one’s who must bust a move and put bread on the table. If this is all we do, it is not enough, but this is the first responsibility.
   Yet, money alone is not provision. As seasons have changed in our lives, we have been wealthy, and very poor. Seems that in the poor times, we have had to stick together really tight and press into Jesus if we wanted to eat that day.
5. Love our Wives – sounds simple right?1 Peter 3:7
   Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayersAnyone who has been married more than a couple of years knows that this will take a prayer life, and the love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost. 
6. 
   Set the Vision for our home – I believe that each family in the earth is ordained of God, and has a specific mandate from heaven to fulfill. It is usually too great for any man, so that is why he is given a wife to help him with it. Submission, means to come under the mission – easy for a wife to do (she is wired that way) when a hard working man of God is following his God given dream.
7. Set the atmosphere of love in your home – Life is hard. Our homes need to be a place of refuge from the storms of life, places of peace, where we can rest, laugh, love and enjoy each other. Keep the battles outside your four walls, but make your dwelling a place of peace. It is here that children can be raised in the training and nurture and admonition of the Lord, for we serve a God of love!
8. 
   Let’s Pray!
   ‘Father, I see my place as head of my home, to set an atmophere of love, honor, holiness, joy, peace, provision, and respect for authority. I submit to your authority in this nation, determined to do right, in obeying the laws of this land, and in doing my job, supporting your work in my church, and any other ministry you call our family to. I see my responsibility to hear you and your vision for our family, recognizing that you have called us, this family, and named us, and given us a place before your throne, in your kingdom. As for me and my house, we will serve you Jesus, trusting that you are building our house, that our work, done in obedience and in worship of you, produces the reward of our inheritance, both in this life, and eternally. I thank you for this privilege Father, and ask you for courage, strength, and faithfulness, to continue to lead, guide, direct, encourage, instruct, train, equip, and bless my wife and children, in your love and light, in your name I pray Lord Jesus, Amen.’