Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Lesson 5 - A Heart That Serves

And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. – Genesis 2:18

The author tells us of how she and her husband struggled in the early years of their marriage due to not having God in their marriage. She goes on to tell how they became a Christian family and turned their lives over to the Lord.

She tells us how she had a lot to learn about being a woman, a wife, a mother who pleased God, and soon started reading through the Bible. She began reading her Bible by following one of those calendars that guides you through the Bible in a year and one of the suggestions in this guide was to mark the passages that spoke to her as a woman with a pink highlighter.

She goes on to tell how one of the first readings she came across Genesis 2:18, which describes a woman’s first aspect of our job assignment as a Christian wife – to serve our husbands by helping them.

CALLED TO SERVE

A woman after God’s own heart is a woman who carefully cultivates a servant spirit, whether she is married or not. She desires to follow in the steps of Jesus, who “did not come to be served, but to serve” (Matthew 20:28)

Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. – Matthew 20:28

This type of following calls for a lifelong attention to the heart attitude of serving.

If you are married, this attitude and service begins at home with your family…more specifically, with your husband.

The first step on our journey to becoming God’s kind of wife is to understand that We are on assignment from God to help our husbands.

What is a “helper”? A helper is one who shares man’s responsibilities, responds to his nature with understanding and love, and wholeheartedly cooperates with him in working out the plan of God.

Consider becoming a team with your husband. By thinking of our relationship as a team, we eliminate the competition between us and our spouses.

A wife should be solidly behind and supportive of her husband.

A servant spirit helps me be more like Christ as I esteem others – especially my husband – as better than myself and commit myself to service.

This mind-set, this servant spirit, helps us to be more like Christ and commit myself to service.

Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. – Philippians 2:3

YES, BUT HOW?

1. Make a commitment to help your husband.

In your prayer journal, write your own prayer of commitment to God.

Let your words reflect your decision to help your husband, to be a team with him, and to make helping him the priority focus of your every day.

2. Focus on your husband.

God wants us to focus our energy and efforts on our husbands. Focus on his tasks, his goals, his responsibilities. This can be an area of struggle because our sin nature cries out “me first”.

Start by asking your husband “What can I do for you today?” or “What can I do to help you make better use of your time today?”

Even if there is no husband in your life, you can nurture a heart of Christ like service as you focus on helping and serving other people.

3. Ask of your actions, Will this help or hinder my husband?

Helping…it’s a simple and noble assignment – and it reaps rich rewards.

We benefit as well as we learn to serve as Christ did.

Being a servant is a sign of Christian maturity. It is the true mark of Christ.

But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: - Philippians 2:7

Who served to the point of death…

Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. – Matthew 20:28

As you and I promote the well being of our husbands – and of the multitude of other people God has placed in our lives – our service glorifies God.

WORKBOOK

What meant the most to you from this chapter or offered you the greatest challenge?

Genesis 2:18-25:

     o The words of this verse emphasize man’s need for a companion, a helper, and an equal. He was incomplete without someone to complement him in fulfilling the task of filling, multiplying, and taking dominion over the earth. This points to Adam’s inadequacy, not Eve’s insufficiency. Woman was made by God to meet man’s deficiency.
     o Recall the definition of a helper.
     o Jot down some of the ways the world’s view of a woman’s role in marriage differs from God’s view.

Write out Matthew 20:28.
     o What is the one word that best describes the heart of this verse?
     o How does Jesus say this can be accomplished in verses 26 and 27?

In your prayer journal – make a commitment to help your husband. Look at it often!

Focus on your husband – What do you plan to do? What specific actions do you plan to take, to focus on your dear husband?

Ask of your actions, Will this help or hinder my husband?
     o Eve (Genesis 3:1-6,17) – Did Eve help or hinder her husband? Why…and how?
     o Sarah (Genesis 16:1-4) – Did Sarah help or hinder her husband? Why…and how?
     o Can you pinpoint any situation in your marriage where your actions or attitudes may be hindering your husband?
     o What do you plan to do about this action or attitude?

Read Acts 18:24-26. How did Priscilla help her husband?

As you think of your service to your husband, why not use these questions as a checklist?
     o Do you see yourself as a team player, free of competitive action, thoughts, or desires?
     o Is your husband your primary career?
     o Is helping your husband your heart’s primary concern and the main focus of your energy?
     o Have you committed your life and your heart to following God’s plan for you, His plan that you help and not hinder your husband?

How can you nurture a heart that serves those in your family, home, school, dorm, workplace, neighborhood, and church?


Verses to Memorize:
Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. – Matthew 20:28

Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. – Philippians 2:3

In your journal, write 100 words or less about one instance when you were aware that you actively chose to help your husband this week. Then thank God for that opportunity and His grace to make that choice.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.