The Transformed Wife

13 Wives in 13 Days...Wives of the Bible Series

Wife #13

This wife had a lot of brokenness.

But instead of choosing bitterness, she chose to become better.  And she did so when she walked by faith.

The Lord redeemed her.

And through His mighty hand, she became joyful and transformed.

Who is she?

She's Sarah, wife of Abraham.

The Transformed Wife

Then God said to Abraham, "Regarding Sarai, your wife—her name will no longer be Sarai. From now on her name will be Sarah.  Genesis 17:15

For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror.  1 Peter 3:5,6

Sarah's come a long way in her faith, has she not?  You remember she's the wife who told her husband to sleep with another woman and then complained to him when said told him it was all his fault. She was self-centered and controlling.  Her conduct was utterly ridiculous.  But now here she is receiving praise for her faith in Christ and her submissive spirit.  Go figure!  Can you even imagine how she went from The Contentious Wife to The Transformed Wife?

How did it all happen?  What happen to Sarai that she became Sarah?

She became broken.  

A broken spirit can either leave you bitter or better.  Sarah chose to run towards the Lord in her pain, rather than away from Him.  Regardless of all the half-cocked decisions she made, there was one that made a huge difference in her life and it was this one....

In her brokenness, she submitted to the will of her Father.

God gave Sarah a new name because He had a new relationship with her.

  

Friend, you and I are just like Sarah; we're being transformed.

But transformation hurts!

If you ever delivered a child then you know what I'm talking about. Before the baby is delivered, you walked into the hospital as a woman who was pregnant.  When you walked out, you weren't.  A transformation took place in the delivery room and it was no picnic!  Going from pregnant to a new mother was quite the painful process.

Let me give you another example.  

Let's look at exercising.  (Ugh!)

When you first start out, it's rather difficult and painful, is it not?  Your muscles ache and sometimes you can barely walk because your muscles are so fatigued and overworked.  As you continue this process, growth starts to take place and you get stronger.  Over time, your body has changed; it's been transformed.  Was it an easy process?  Hardly!

It's the same premise in our spiritual lives.  God takes us through times of brokenness so He can strengthen us and grow us in our faith.  As we hold fast to the promises of God, in time, we become transformed.  

Or we can just check out on the whole walking with Christ thing because it's just too difficult.  Let me just say right now, that's not a good move, girlfriend.  You may think your life is hard following Christ, I can tell you from first hand experience it would be way worse without Him.

Or how about this one?  Continuing walking with Christ but in a lukewarm fashion?  Another bad move.  You're living between bitter and better.  There is no joy or peace in that land, just fear and discontentment. 

A transformed wife is a wife of faith.

For we walk by faith, not by sight.  2 Cor. 5:7

In our marriage, we should be walking according to the Scriptures, not according to our feelings or what the world says to do.

Is this easy?  No way!  We have to die to ourselves daily.  We have to walk in the Spirit, not our flesh.  We have to be intentional about pursing Christ and not our own selfish desires.  And when you do these things day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year, guess what?  We become transformed wives.  We are no longer Sarai's, but Sarah's; we're wives of faith!  We are wives obedient to the Scriptures because we believe in God's promises.  We believe that God truly does know what He's talking about!

The Road of Transformation

On this road we become The Submissive Wife because we're submitting to our LORD, who tells us to submit to our lord (husband) as Sarah called her man. 

On this road we become The Respectful Wife as we follow our husband.

On this road we become The Wife Who Wasn't a Doormat when we speak to our man without any fear or terror of him. (1 Peter 3:6)

On this road we become The Enticing Wife as we sexually delight in our husband, drawing closer to him, physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

On this road we become The Wife After God's Own Heart when we have a reverent fear of our Lord; seeking to please Him which compels us to joyfully serve others.

The road is hard, but it's right in God's eyes.  You may want to argue this path but let me give you a word of caution....

"What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator.  Isaiah 45:9

Now let's reconcile our personalities with this road, shall we?

For the assertive personalities like Sarah, God made you this way for a reason.  He gave you boldness for a purpose.  So instead of using your personality for evil, use it for good.  The last thing my personality would scream is 'submissive', yet, I've recognized that God does indeed know what He's doing when He told wives to submit to their husbands.  What I've learned to do (and still learning) is to use my controlling nature to control myself rather than others.  I don't always succeed in this, by the way!  But I'm intentional about this pursuit because my marital relationship is more important than my need to control.  

For the non-confrontational, peacemaker personality, use your peacemaking qualities to speak your heart to your husband. When you're doing this you're creating a peaceful marriage.  But realize there's a big difference between keeping the peace and making things peaceful.  God gave you a beautiful sweet spirit that soothes and comforts others.  You're personality is needed for the advancement of the Kingdom of God.  

Discern the difference between who God made you to be and the sin that seeps out of you.

You were made by God and for God, my friend!  Let your personality shine for Him but try to keep your sin under control!  He's the one who grows you as He pierces your heart.  And with a willing and surrendered spirit, He's the One who'll transform you!

"Behold, I make all things new."  Rev. 21:5

What to Do According to Sarah's Life...

• Realize there's a purpose for the pain that you're going through.
• Submit to God because it's the best position to be in.
• Live by faith.

Challenge for Today

• Try not to fight the transformation process that taking place within you.  Rest in the Lord's plan for marriage.

So, I've had a great time writing this series, the pace was a little fast especially when I couldn't remember what wife was who!  But needless to say, the Lord ministered to me and sustained me during this process and I'm so glad I decided to take on this writing challenge.  

Now what's next?  Will I write on more Wives of the Bible?  Well, I've received many emails asking this exact question.  I'll let you know what's up in my next post!

Now just for fun, which wife did you identify with the most?  And which one is the hardest to emulate?

Live a poured out life for Christ,

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