FEELNGS VS PURPOSE

There was a Facebook post quite recently, where someone stated that ‘There is absolutely no man that despises his wife and still be successful. You shall never find one’

In the debate that followed, the writer of this quote explained that if a man mistreats his wife, she will not pray for him and he will therefore not succeed.

Another said ‘Look at Donald Trump and realize that if he had the right attitude (towards his wife) he would be president’.

Good heavens! I’m not sure if I have the energy to break down everything that is wrong with this assumption, but I shall try.

First: Donald Trump is on his third wife and won the US elections against all odds.

Second: Who is it that determines a man’s success?

You see, God has a purpose for each person. There are some people who God created to play a part in the bigger picture of His plan. We all know that God’s purpose will stand regardless of anything.

During the debate, I mentioned that since we do not know Gods plan for anyone’s life, it is not our place to determine whether someone is successful or not. What if, God did not create Trump to be President of the United States? Would God have considered Trump a failure if he had lost the election? In Gods eyes, can you fail at something He never wanted you to do in the first place?

As far as material wealth is concerned, I think we can all agree that Donald Trump, being a billionaire is as successful as majority of men in the world would like to be. 

You see, as a woman, it would be comfortable and pleasing to believe that if my husband does not treat me well, he will not succeed in life. It’s a comfortable lie, but still, a lie. 

God cares about our feelings, He weeps when we weep, but He will not change His purpose for your husband just because you have cried many tears. His purpose will stand regardless of anything. Sure, on judgment day, your husband might end up going downwards to the fire, that also depends on whether he repents before judgment day or not.

There are some women, I know several of them actually, who continue to pray for their man’s success, even as they weep over his actions towards them. They pray out of love, and out of the knowledge that whatever God does to their husbands will also affect them and their children.

If your husband mistreats you and God decides to punish him by taking all his material wealth and his physical health, will you, as a wife, not suffer too? Will you not be homeless with him? If he is physically sick, will you not be spending your days taking care of him? No man is an island and I have been trying to figure out if there is a way God can punish a man in such a way that it does not affect those around him.

Then there’s the other side of the coin. If a man who despises his wife will not succeed, shouldn’t every man who loves and respects his wife, then be successful? If this situation is as simple as people would like it to be, it should work both ways, right?

I tend to disagree with people who generalize the things of God without looking deeper into the way God works. I am not denying that God will punish the cruel man in some way, that is His law and it is also His prerogative. We, as humans, do not get to dictate who God will punish, and how.

 It is important to our egos, our peace of mind, to believe that those who hurt us will not go unpunished, but …let’s not forget to make room for Gods purpose, Gods will and Gods prerogative.

In my opinion, our hurt feelings matter to God, but His overall purpose matters more. You will move on from the pain, God will give you the peace you need, and His purpose will go on as planned.