Looking For a Few Good Men
That's the lament of many single Christian women as they survey prospects for a godly husband, one willing and capable of leading them.
- Andrea G. Schwartz
That's the lament of many single Christian women as they survey prospects for a godly husband, one willing and capable of leading them. These are no ordinary women. They have been raised to be dedicated Christians who look to the law-word of God as their standard for femininity. They embrace their chastity as a deliberate decision of obedience; and they understand that God's Word informs every area of life and thought. From a young age, these young ladies have aspired to be wives and mothers, even when their immediate role models fell far short of Biblical standards. Has their obedience destined them to the society of godly old maids? Is there some sort of cosmic injustice going on?
There is a saying in sales that word of mouth is the best advertising. Rather than lament the apparent slim pickings in their midst (and mothers sometimes lament more than their daughters), these hopeful future wives and moms should be using their gifts and talents to help the greater Body of Christ. What better "advertising" than for Christian families to get to know these young ladies and see their virtues demonstrated in service and then recommending them to brothers, uncles, and friends. Instead of looking for a few good men, this would result in many fine men finding these girls.
Families should not encourage their daughters to train for careers that require them to spend time where they would be unlikely to find appropriate husbands. Daughters also should remain debt free so they are not forced into the workplace to pay off college debt. Instead, what if these women helped care for the young, the elderly, and the infirmed? What if they were to be the work force of their local churches helping with the needs that often go unmet or farmed out to state institutions? Instead of getting the freebies of statism, what if Christian families provided a small stipend to these women to help them defray their costs of gas, insurance etc.?
In the meantime, any man worth his salt should be preparing himself to be worthy of these women. In the long run - rather than affect the world by means of being in the board room or the halls of statehouses, women would be encouraging men to fulfill their God-ordained roles with the prospect of godly wives as their helpmeets.
- Andrea G. Schwartz
Andrea Schwartz is Chalcedon’s family and Christian education advocate, and the author of eight books including: A House for God: Building a Kingdom-Driven Family, The Biblical Trustee Family: Understanding God’s Purpose for Your Household, Empowered: Developing Strong Women for Kingdom Service, Woman of the House: A Mother’s Role in Building a Christian Culture, and The Homeschool Life: Discovering God’s Way to Family-Based Education. She’s also the co-host of the Out of the Question podcast, the Chalcedon podcast, and has an active teaching schedule with women and high schooled students.. She can be reached at [email protected].