1 Peter 3:1, Part 2
Male Headship

Unmarried people: Don’t skip this week’s prayer blog! The married people need your prayers. Pray that the husbands and wives in our church family will be strengthened to live according to the authority structure ordained by God for the home. Also, realize that you are in a position to hold married people accountable in the context of a close friendship or a small group. If you are an unmarried woman, for example, perhaps you are the objective “outsider” who can ask the married woman, “How are you doing submitting to your husband?”

Wives: The principle of male headship in the home is easy to accept on a theoretical level but violate in the trenches of real life. We are good at excuses and justifications, at explaining to ourselves why our marriage is the asterisk-worthy exception. After all, we know our husbands better than anyone and are acutely aware of his flaws and failures. Find some time and space to sit before the Lord and ask Him to identify the true leader in your home. Is it your husband, or is it you? If you hold the reins, explain to the Lord why you do; it is valuable to put your reasons into words. Then be still and listen to what He has to say about your explanations. Ask God to help you change, to point out in the moment, “Here’s an opportunity to submit to your husband.” Ask God to help you trust your husband to lead you and your family.

Husbands: You are accountable to God for how you lead your wife and family. What a solemn thought! Brace yourself and ask the Lord: How am I doing as the leader in my home? Perhaps you have abdicated leadership, because that is the easier path. It may seem impossible to change the structure of your marriage now, but remember that nothing is impossible with God. Perhaps you do lead, but you abuse your authority, doing whatever you want with little regard for your wife. Before the Lord, ask: Do I give myself up for my wife? What does that even look like? Am I harsh with her? Does she feel understood and respected and heard? Whatever your failings, confess them to God and ask for His power to change. Ask Him to show you tangible ways to be a more godly leader in your home, day by day.

All of us: Lift up not only your own marriage but all the marriages in our body. Pray for soul-searching by both spouses, for honest conversation, for confession of failings by each spouse to the other, and for a shared determination to obey the word of God.

Calvary Family

Calvary’s children will be singing in both services next Sunday, which is Palm Sunday. Pray that, as young as they are, they will understand that singing is about praising God and pointing people to Jesus, not performing for applause and approval.

Be praying about whom you might invite to church on Easter – a neighbor, a friend, a co-worker. Ask the Lord for an opportunity to invite someone and the boldness to speak.

Planning and preparation for VBS is already underway. Pray for the VBS leadership – for wisdom and direction, for a laser focus on what is most important about VBS. Ask the Lord to raise up people with the right gifts to staff this important ministry.

Pray for Pastor Tomasz Chylka as he looks for a newer, more reliable vehicle. His current car is 14 years old with more than 186,000 miles on it. In Poland, as here in the U.S., good used cars have become harder to find and more expensive. Ask God to provide just the right vehicle for at a price within his budget.

In Christ,
Carol Gilbert

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