As a Christ-follower, I am dedicated to my husband because I love him and honor the marriage vows I made to him
So then, my friends, because of God’s great mercy to us I appeal to you: Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to his service and pleasing to him. This is the true worship that you should offer. (Romans 12:1 GNT)
We see dedication on display in loyalty, devotion, and commitment to a person or cause. As a military wife, the word “dedication” brings to my mind women like Martha Washington. General George’s wife was one of many brave women who followed her husband to battlefield encampments to ease some of the hardships of war. History records women who tried to bring some of the comforts of home to the front lines by cooking, cleaning, and nursing the wounded. Some women even fired muskets right alongside their husbands.1 That is what I call fierce dedication.
Today’s military wife does not follow her husband to the combat zone, but she still shows her dedication by her willingness to continue the pioneer spirit of military wives long past. My modern-day list of dedicated military wives includes Susan, Cindy, Jennifer, Celeste, Holly, and countless others. These friends have endured multiple deployments and numerous moves, but they remain deeply dedicated to their husbands and the military communities in which they live and serve. They will tell you that their dedication to Christ translates into dedication to their husbands and subsequently to military life.
As a Christ-follower, I am dedicated to my husband because I love him and honor the marriage vows I made to him. Over time my dedication to him has grown deeper as the commitment we made is proven in daily life. I support his choice of career while I live into God’s call on my own life. We will see through the journey of Abraham and Sarah that there is more to living a dedicated life than may readily be observed. Are you curious? Then let’s keep moving! Where will your steps of dedication lead you today?
Respond
What are the areas of your life in which you display dedication? How would you prioritize those areas?
Prayer for the journey
Father, I want to be fully dedicated and committed to your purposes in the world. Help me see how being a dedicated military wife fits into that plan. I stand ready for the adventure. Amen.
1 Betty Sowers and Bonnie Stone, Campfollowing: A History of the Military Wife (Westport, CT: Praeger, 1991), 14.
