Fortify Follow-up

On Tuesday night at Fortify we wanted to take a couple of minutes for a pep talk. A good number (into double figures) of the wives of those who attended have started a group studying the book ‘The Excellent Wife’ by Martha Peace. That was a bold and undeniable statement of their desire to serve Jesus better as the children of God He has made them to be and the wives that they have made promises before their Heavenly Father to be.

Looking around their husbands faces on Tuesday as we spoke about it I could tell that they are pretty happy about that. So here was how we challenged the men. The efforts that their wives are making to serve them by going deeper into God’s Word about what being a godly wife looks like only really serves the marriage if the husband runs even harder and faster. Too often in churches up and down the country and across the world the girls are running full on for Jesus while the guys are weighing anchor somewhere way back nowhere.

It would be a damaging thing to see this book study as a good thing for our wives to do in isolation. It would be crazy to think that the best outcome of this is to make our lives more pleasant rather than making our lives more pleasing to God. So the challenge for all the guys is to to the same work, and more, than their wives are doing. If anyone sees this as overly competitive they miss the point that most guys need some kind of spiritual kick up the backside and need to remember that scriptures call us to consider how to stir up one another to love and good works (Hebrews 10:24).

R. Kent Hughes has this to say. 'The man who sanctifies his wife understands that this is his divinely ordained responsibility… Is my wife more like Christ because she is married to me? Or is she like Christ in spite of me? Has she shrunk from His likeness because of me? Do I sanctify her or hold her back? Is she a better woman because she is married to me?' (Disciplines of a Godly Man, Crossway Books, 1991, p. 35-36)

So below are some books that we think are going to serve the guys in serving their saviour by serving their wives, or prepare our single and dating guys for when that day might come. Gents, let's get after it. Ladies, praying for great blessings on you as you study and trusting that your man is going to be a changed man in the coming weeks and months.

The Exemplary Husband- Stuart Scott

Effectively the equivalent for guys to the book the girls are studying. To that extent this book is probably the one that will best serve you best if you are married to one someone who has spent some time in 'The Excellent Wife.' The blurb says, 'The Exemplary Husband is a biblical blueprint for the mandate God has given to husbands in the covenant of marriage to love their wives, even as Christ loved the church.' Sounds like something worth investing in right- go get it.

Humility- CJ Mahaney

One of those books where if you're not sure whether you need to read it- you definitely need to read it. One of the, if not THE, greatest hindrances in our marriages is our own pride. In reality, that is true of most of life. Here's what the blurb has to say, 'paints a striking picture of the daily battle quietly raging within every Christian and asks whether you will passively accommodate the enemy of your soul, pride, or actively cultivate your best friend, humility. When you acknowledge the deception of pride and intentionally humble yourself, you become free to savor abundant mercies and unlikely graces. You will find a new life is yours - a life God richly favors. A God-glorifying life you don't want to miss.'

Point Man- Steve Farrar

Often we act like the world revolves around us rather than seeing that many people would be served by us being less self-serving. The blurb has this to say, 'Men will find practical insight on topics such as a father's influence, maintaining purity, and husband-and-wife teamwork. In this war, renowned men's author Steve Farrar emphasizes that Jesus Christ is looking for men who will not die, but live for their families.

So, there is a small selection of short books that could really bring a great deal of godly influence to bear upon your marriages and families. They will serve you whether you are already married, preparing for it, thinking about it or nowhere near it. E-mail [email protected] to order.