His Comments

Her Comments

As I’ve mentioned in the past, I was a non-believer when I met my wife. I didn’t give my life to Christ until 5-6 years after we were married. Thinking about the topic this week, and considering how we have grown as Christians together, I naturally think about all my years as a non-believer. Looking back and thinking about how I used to think about God (or in my case, thoughts of a lack of God), I can see scripture like 1 Peter 3:1-2 to hold true. I feel the Holy Spirit worked through my wife to plant seeds of faith throughout those first 5-6 years.

My wife helped care for my mother during her struggle with cancer. After my mother’s passing, my wife continued to help support me through the difficult time of losing both parents within that past year. I feel this show of love and patience helped open me up to the idea of Christianity. It didn’t work like a switch, where one day I didn’t believe and the next I did, but more so it allowed me to see the contrast between a lifestyle as a non-believer and a lifestyle of a believer. Fast forward to the last 2-3 years, both of us being believers, I feel that love and patience she showed early on provided a foundation that continues to get stronger. It reminds me of scripture in Matthew:

While this parable applies to building one’s faith on solid biblical teachings, marriage can also be applied to its teachings. It is important to have that solid foundation in marriage. Scripture warns against marrying someone who is unequally yoked, like my wife did with a non-believer. Had it not been for a solid foundation, my wife planting seeds, and the work of the Holy Spirit, I’m uncertain what my life would be like today. Would I be a Christian? Would my wife had been corrupted by my unbelief? Would I be divorced? Only God knows and thank the Lord for guiding the two of us along the path that we are on today.

The Lord has blessed my wife with a love for education, and because of this, we started taking biblical classes two years ago. We graduate from the three-year program at the end of this year. By this time, we will have read the entirety of the Bible. I acknowledge just “reading” the Bible doesn’t imply understanding; I am grateful the Lord has provided us a way to study and discuss theological issues as we participate in this program and read scripture. God’s word is truth.

The Lord allowed our paths to cross, and in doing so, has led us along a journey of continued spiritual growth. My wife pushed me to continue education, which led me to starting Seminary over a year ago. She continues to enjoy the many videos I find concerning historical evidence for the Bible, how we got our Bible, etc. We balance each other. Her push for education and good grades, and my push to continue to find answers to theological questions. The Holy Spirit continues to guide us to grow together in faith, as well as in a loving, balanced, and honoring marriage.

In Matthew, we are called to pray in secret, not praying as the hypocrites do. I don’t feel this is boasting that I may be honored by men. I regularly thank the Lord for putting my wife in my life and thank him for the opportunity to continue to serve him. If it were not for God, I would still be dead in my sin. It’s only through his love that my wife and I met, that we can continue to grow, and we have the opportunities to serve. All Glory is God’s.

Wow! My husband has grown in religion exponentially in the span of our marriage. When we started our trail, he only knew Christianity from the eyes of others. My husband learns by debating. (This is annoying to some, infuriating to others, and most think he is arguing with them). At the start of our marriage my conversations with him would end up in atheist vs Christian debates on things like: explain the big bang, why is marriage important, and hot button ideas popular in the current news.

When I was younger, the Church taught me the scripture (Matthew 10:32-33) that you do not deny Jesus or he will deny you in front of the Father. That struck me hard and I do not deny my beliefs to others. I am, however, compassionate to those who have a different belief system than I do. Having the freedom of religion means that we should be able to have respectful conversations and disagree without hating each other after the conversation. Little did I know, Robert was learning more from my actions rather than our hours of long debates on the issues. I was following God’s instruction on how women should teach their husbands without even knowing I was doing this (1 Peter 3:1-7).

At this point I was a Christian; but in many respects, I was a baby Christian. I only knew the information that was taught to me through the sporadic times I went to church, but I never researched the information on my own. I attempted to read the Bible, but I never got past Leviticus! (I know now that people should start with the New Testament) When Robert decided that he believed, he next started to look for a church and decide on a denomination. I am a proud Baptist woman. We went to a few different denominational churches growing up, but they all mainly had the same doctrine. As a teenager, I solidified my denomination by being baptized in the Southern Baptist Faith. So, when Robert decided that he was learning what doctrine to believe, we had some issues. He was researching several sticking points like infant baptism, transubstantiation, and absolution. That meant that I had to do some research!

We would get into debates. (He likes to take the opposite view of who he is debating no matter his belief, to see if you can give him more insight). At times he would have my belief, but continue to argue the other side until we were actually in a fight. He would laugh. I would yell and throw pillows at him. At times I would tell him to drop it because he was wrong and that is all that matters! This just amused him, and he would laugh. I would go insane.

However, I was proud of him. He was debating with me, debating his friend at work, and researching via books and videos to understand the points that others would make. He would verify the answers using scripture. He was deciding with God on who was correct. (I was of course in the end. Men, if you could just learn that the wife is always right, your life will be much easier!) Anyway, here he is, saved and thirsting for more.

He needed a church. I did not have a church at this time because after I moved, I never went church shopping. I have never gone church shopping. I always went to where my family took me and then later where my best friend took me. I did not know how to do this or what to look for when I go to a new church. I just knew that I was not going to change what I believed to be part of that church. So, I asked one of the most pious (I mean this with respect) friends I knew about where she went to church and what her denomination was. She was also a Baptist and was able to direct me to her church. They have helped us learn a great deal about the Bible.

We continue to grow every day. We constantly watch YouTube debates, theology, read books, read the Bible, take classes on the Bible, and research questions together as a couple daily. We enjoy learning together. We have fun watching debates, learning what the other side believes, and how we can answer their rebuttal. We are also able to pray or ask our church family when we are trying to learn about something we are confused about.

It is weird, but now Robert is more knowledgeable about our religion and denomination than I am. We are not baby Christians anymore. I would consider us young adult Christians. Hahahaha. Robert is currently going to seminary to learn even more about God and to follow his calling in life. I am happy to just be the woman at home to help him accomplish his dreams. Also, I can be the woman behind the man for whatever God has in store for him.

God Bless.