Submission vs. Obedience -- Guest Post from Misty at Simply Helping Him

Thanks so much to Misty from Simply Helping Him for guest posting today while I'm in England. I love this thoughtful article she's blessed us with today, and fully endorse everything she's written here. Thanks for being a blessing, Misty!

Obedience and submission; did you know they are different? Do you know what they both mean? K.P. Yohannan describes these words in his book, "Touching Godliness", as this.

"Submission is a heart attitude toward authority, whereas obedience is an action."

As help meets we are called to obey our husbands, and we are also called to submit to their authority. Choosing to fall under my husband's authority because I'm "supposed to" does not mean I am submitting. That is a choice, and is obedience not submission. 

In order to submit to our husband's authority, our hearts must be changed. We must allow God to work on our hearts, to bring them to the place where we submit to our husbands. 

Submitting to our husbands does not mean we are going to allow them to walk over us. We are still part of a relationship, in which we both are a picture of Christ and the church. It takes more than one person to create that picture. We are accepting that our husbands are in authority by submitting to them. They are responsible for themselves, their wives and family. God will hold them accountable for how they handled their families. 

Our husbands are a measure of protection over us. As women, we tend to be more emotional and make decisions based on feelings. A marriage relationship functions through communication together. It is this relationship that we can be protected when our husband senses our emotions and feelings are affecting our decisions. Our marriages will be off-balance and never reach the place God intended, should our hearts not be aligned with God's will for us as help meets. 

Submission requires selflessness and humility. Our wants and wishes must be given up, should our husband's blessing not be given. Choosing to listen to him and give up these things, demands humility. Without humility, our hearts aren't truly submitting. We must remember that our husbands are human, just as we are. 

Should you believe that God's hand is in a decision you brought to your husband, then there are 3 things you should do.  

1. Pray.

Ask God to guide you in how to re-address the topic with your husband.

2. Humbly talk to your husband (in God's timing).

Sharing your heart and how God has brought this to your heart.

3. Wait.

God's timing is perfect. Ours is not. He will work on your husband's heart.

 

Remember, obedience is the action and submission is the humble, selfless heart behind the action.

We have an amazing opportunity in marriage! To watch God's plan for marriage unfold before our eyes, as the beautiful masterpiece He created!

May we all become part of this beautiful marriage picture that God planned from the beginning of time!

Misty @ Simply Helping Him

I am living life unfulfilled with my hubby (and our lil blessings).  He is a self-employed fisherman, and a Mainah through and through.  Thus, we live in Maine.

I love to write!  I love to talk, though for some reason, when I do about things of importance, something gets lost when I speak.  Thus, I blog at Simply Helping Him!

I thrive on music, coffee, sweet tea, hot tea, reading, and gardening in my "spare" time!
     

Country Yarn Vase: Guest Post by Tauna at Proverbial Homemaker

Thanks so much to Tauna at Proverbial Homemaker for guest posting today while I'm in England! Isn't this an adorable little craft? Make sure and pin it---then stop by Proverbial Homemaker to check out her excellent blog!

While we were on vacation last month, a sweet neighbor watered my gardens for me. I wanted to get her something nice but simple, so I thought I'd try an idea I saw on Pinterest and make her a vase with some flowers from the garden. 

This project is just right for my attention span and my level of skill, which is nothing to speak of. I love projects that look fancy but can be done in 15 minutes! I'm not sure where I saw the idea to begin with, but here is another example. 

Fortunately, I had all I needed on hand, including an empty bottle of coffee syrup and that giant skein of white yarn I bought years ago with the funny idea of knitting something. 

What you need:

• Yarn
• White school glue
• Tape
• Empty, clean bottle
• Scissors

My first attempt was a lazy one where I tried to skip removing the labels. Bad idea. They show through! Remove them.

Any yarn will do. Some people say the flat, thicker kind is better, but generic worked for me. Any tape is fine. I had packing tape available. Some people recommend hot glue but I found plain old white was fine. 

 

1. Tape the end of the yarn up toward toward the opening. 

2. Start by drawing a line of glue where you want the yarn to go and adhering it, pausing to set when needed. Proceed around the bottle.

 

  3. Soon you can lay down blocks of glue like this and wind the yarn around quicker. 

 

  4.When you finish a block, press the strands down to close the gaps. The yarn is very forgiving, so you can fix the straightness as you go or at the end.

5. Wind to the end, close all gaps and straighten strands, and let dry!

 

  See where I got a little eager to take a picture and didn't close the gaps correctly on the neck of the bottle? Don't do that! ;)

I may try a couple more in different colors to make a set of three. It would look pretty on a mantle or as a centerpiece. 

This might be a fun project for you or your kids to do with some scrap yarn and empty bottles! 

Tauna @ Proverbial Homemaker

Tauna loves her family and loves God.  She has been married for 7 years and has 4 young children.  She writes at Proverbial Homemaker, so named because, as she says, "me becoming a wife, mom, and homemaker proves that anything is possible with God."

Follow Hope In Every Season's board Craft Ideas on Pinterest.

The Homemaking Party

Nope, you're not seeing things!  That really is baby Brenna there on the left sitting up!!!  Where does the time go? She and big sister Kynthia are best friends!

I'm headed to England bright and early Thursday morning! To say I'm excited is totally an understatement! If you haven't already, make sure and check out my dresses and accessories for the Jane Austen Festival on yesterday's Make Bake Create party!

Also, stay tuned for some very special guest bloggers.  Some of my friends have agreed to keep my blog alive while I'm gone---thanks so much friends!

Now it's time for the party!