"Wives should be submissive to their husbands as if to the Lord because the husband is head of his wife just as Christ is head of his body the church, as well as its savior" (Ephesians 5:22-23).

There's that dreaded word submission! Lest I be accused of being a traitor to the better half (depending on who is reading this, of course!) let's remember that even Christ submitted to his Father and the servants on earth are not greater than the Master. God is the author of peace, and there must be order in the world, from the family unit on up to the very universe itself. Actually, in verse 21, each is to submit to the other but, in the heavenly scheme of things, the wife is finally to submit to the Christian husband's decisions. It is hoped that the husband arrives at household decisions through prayer and deep concern for the welfare and salvation of his wife and his children. Amos 3:3 warns us: "Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?" I realize we don't know a person until we have lived with him/her, but it would help if we agree on the basics like church, children, ideas and ideals. The toothpaste we can deal with later.

There is no inferiority implied here, for both are equal before the Lord, and each is responsible to God and to each other. God has first claim, and each have first duty to God and then to each other. It is the gracious obedience of equal to equal that God asks, so that harmony may result. I'm old enough to remember when men were men and women were women, and we seemed content with that; we complemented each other. We even threw in a compliment once a month. But today we seem hell-bent on rearranging God's plan for mankind and womankind--and we seem to have forgotten to be kind, period.

Let's get back to God's plan and we'll all be happier.