How to Honor Your Husband: Fight for Him

by Marilynn Chadwick

I’ve discovered that honoring my husband in today’s culture requires something of a fight. It helps to realize that we have an enemy. Not just of our soul, but also of our marriages. In addition to waging a war with the devil, our battle for a strong marriage is also a battle against our own selfish tendencies.

Honoring our husbands sometimes goes against the grain of our flesh. If we truly want to honor our husbands, we’ll find ourselves resisting a world that degrades and disrespects marriage.

I’ve learned I can best fight for my husband and honor our marriage most powerfully by interceding for him in prayer. I believe deep within the heart of every good woman lives a warrior. Her fierce love can make even the most timid woman do courageous things. Maybe you’ve learned what it means to fight for someone you love.

My friend Ange is from Rwanda. Gentle and soft-spoken, Ange is a shining example of a woman who honored her husband by fighting for him.

Ange was in high school when the horrific Rwandan genocide broke out in 1994. She and Emanuel fled on foot. Soldiers attacked their refugee camp. Ange and Emanuel got separated as they ran for their lives. She searched frantically for him, hiding in the forest with no clean water, food, or shelter.

Ange made her way to Kenya. She looked everywhere for Emanuel. Eventually she enrolled in Bible college while she continued her search. For eight years! Even her closest friends tried to persuade Ange to accept that Emanuel was dead—and to remarry.

But Ange sensed the Holy Spirit was whispering to keep on fighting and to believe that Emanuel was still alive. Her lifeline became, “We rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character hope. And hope does not disappoint us” (Romans 5:3-5 NIV).

While listening to a radio program which helped find missing family members after the war, she heard the amazing news that Emanuel was alive. “It was like a dream!” she exclaimed. “I stayed up all night praising and thanking God!” After eight long years, Ange and Emanuel were finally reunited—all because of a wife who kept fighting for her husband.

This series is adapted from Marilynn Chadwick’s book, Eight Great Ways to Honor Your Husband. To download your free PDF copy of the book, please visit our website by clicking here!