Hark! Who Goes There?

“And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai” --Gen. 16:2b
Uh-oh…..Abram hearkened to the voice of his wife. Is this good or bad? For most of my Christian life, this verse has had a negative connotation to me; many times it was given as an example of wives usurping the husband’s role in the family structure, making decisions for him, etc. The consequences of Abram’s actions were “evidence” of the seemingly harmful effects of him listening to his wife’s advice.

Now in this specific incident, I will admit, Sarai is definitely giving some bad advice; it contradicts God’s word on the subject of marriage (Gen. 2:24), thereby replacing His will with her own, and generally messing things up for generations to come. But let’s not throw out the baby with the bathwater…..
God has given us wives a very special area of influence with our husbands that no one else has. Because we are one, our husbands should feel very safe in coming to us to “bounce things off” us and figure out life’s problems. What advice or counsel are you offering?

The Bud and his Three Lovelies

Are you speaking the will of God into your husband’s life? Are you seeking God through prayer and His Word, for you, your husband, and your family? Does what you say to him line up with God’s Word, thereby being sound counsel? If your answers are yes, then “_____________ (fill in husband’s name here) hearkened to the voice of ________________(fill in your name here)” is a good thing!

Let’s expand on this theme a little more; who else is hearkening to your voice? Your children? Their friends? Other moms? I’m not much of a math person, but I do like a good diagram every now and then; I see them more as pictures, so my mind can easily grasp the concept being explained. And I really get Venn Diagrams --the whole “what’s in common here” can be seen immediately. Your life is like one big, humongous Venn Diagram. You have several spheres of influence; various groups of people hearkening to your voice, counsel, teaching, etc. You are the common denominator in each of those circles. What are you saying to each of those spheres? Again, are you speaking the will of God into those people? Are you seeking God through prayer and His Word for each of those little circles?

And then, conversely, who are you hearkening to? First and foremost, you should be going to God and His Word, and allowing the Holy Spirit to “guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). Then, seek out a community of people who are also doing the same, and gain wise counsel from them (Prov. 15:22 and 24:6), either by just hanging around them or actually picking their brain about certain subjects.

We as women need to be reminded of our special influence over the people in our lives. Let us not forget the great responsibility that comes with this influence.

Hark! Who goes there?  Oh --it's me!