Unexpectedly, Jack Sharpe veered off into territory I couldn’t resist; cherishing your marriage. You’ll love what he said about searching out the glory hidden in each other.
Publisher at Bethlehem Books, Jack came on the show to talk about kids books, one of my favorite subjects, classic kids’s literature.
His ideas forced my brain to process lickety-split.
Of course, I especially liked the way he described the husband searching out the glory God hides in a wife. Here are the three basic principles Jack shared for searching out the glory God hides in marriage.
Searching Out the Glory
Three principles for searching out the glory God hides in marriage–
1) Jesus gives His glory to the Church.
2) God hides the glory of a marriage in the wife.
3) Searching out the glory in his marriage is the glory of the husband.
To clarify, I’ll try to share all that he said. So, keep reading. However, please listen in for the nuances you won’t want to miss!
Cherishing Each Other in Marriage
Almost fifty years ago, Jack and Jean committed to loving each other in the context of a very special group of believers they call Bethlehem Community. Their closeness allowed them to understand marriage sanctity within an extra close commitment of community. It’s a rare experience Jack describes as a calling.
“We sold our building because we needed capital to publish our (first) children’s book, which we did. But then we had no place to live,” Jack explains. Their community of believers decided to step out in faith together. (Bethlehem Books rescues out-of-print classic literature, offering authors or their heirs a way to spark the imagination and faith of another generation of book-loving kiddos and parents.)
Within a short time, they found themselves settled into a convent. Still, it was clear, they would soon need more space. Soon they were offered another building, North Dakota’s old School for the Blind. Joyfully, they bought it for a buck. One dollar.
Thus, began the arduous task of renovating 17,000 square feet of fabulous historic home, complete with oak paneling and trim. Not to mention deteriorating ancient windows and plumbing. And, my favorite part, room for their eventual collection of approximately 25,000 children’s books.
Trusting God and Listening to Each Other
“You know when you trust the Lord, I sometimes think about this,” he explains, “We’d sold the building out from under us. I was absolutely terrified. We had babies and we had young children. We had single people.” Of course, their community learned a lot from that experience. Most importantly, they learned to search the scripture for the principles that work well for life.
“One of the big principles in our community life is the idea that we actually work as hard as we can on being able to hear one another,” he emphasizes. “You (Cathy) pointed out in your book the different variety of ways of hearing one another. But (it’s) the basic principle that has helped our couples, my wife and I especially.” (Order your copy of my book, The Well: The Art of Drawing Out Authentic Conversations.)
As we talk, Jack ties together three Biblical principles to form a treatise on how God designed husbands to cherish their wives. If you’re wondering how searching out the glory of each other can spark cherishing in your marriage, keep reading! You’re gonna love this.
#1 Jesus gives His glory to the Church.
“And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.” ~John 17:22-23, NKJV
“So Jesus basically gives His glory, which is just about everything You can think of, to the church before He leaves,” Jack explains the first principle. “It’s a fascinating thought. Okay, so He’s given us His glory; it’s gonna be revealed when He comes back or when we go to heaven, that whole thing. It’s not revealed right now so much.”
Sometimes, we all feel like God’s glory is somewhat hidden. Unless you know what you’re seeing all around you, of course. (In my book, The Well, I explain why women are natural wisdom-seekers by God’s design.)
#2 God hides the glory of a marriage in the wife.
“But then if we take Ephesians, we realize that Paul says, ‘Well, Husbands lay down you life for your wife like Christ lays down His life for the church,’” Jack explains further from Ephesians 5:25. Next, he shares a personal example from his own life.
“When we were first married I had a kind of a backwards idea. I’m the leader; I’m the husband,” Jack laughs, adding, “I’m supposed to come up with all the ideas.”
Conflict ensued “because my wife also had ideas and thoughts and things like that,” he laughs, adding how the Biblical principle transformed his thinking. “‘Oh wait a minute, Jack, it’s all hidden in your wife. How ‘bout you spend your life digging it out?’” Naturally, He gives Jean lots of credit for intuitively understanding what God could do with their lives.
“The whole publishing idea came from my wife. I’ve been a publisher now for some twenty years. Ask me if I ever thought of being a publisher in my life. Never, never, never!”
#3 The husband’s adventure in searching out the glory in his wife.
“The adventure is in believing that (where) God is taking your family, your children, so much is hidden away in this spouse of yours,” Jack says. “The husband’s job is to dig it out. Well, that makes for an exciting life.”
Finally, he quotes Proverbs for one more principle to tie it all together.
“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.” ~Proverbs 25:2
“We’ve actually pondered on those three verses for a long time, realizing ‘Oh, oh, this is how it works,” reports Jack. “A couple that’s married, basically, how God has set this up is He’s hidden the glory, or you could say the couple’s mission, the couple’s life, the couple’s direction, it’s all hidden in the wife.”
Of course, men will like this idea because Jack compares the husband to a wise king who seeks out God’s hidden-away glory.
“Because it’s the glory of God to hide a matter and it’s the glory of kings, now we’re gonna say the husband he’s the king, right?” says Jack. “It’s the glory of the king to search it out, to find out, dig out, basically from his relationship with his wife, where the heck they’re going.”
Cherishing Our Marriages By Listening
Well, I couldn’t help but think of the parable Jesus told about the wise man who sold all he had to obtain the field where he knew there was a priceless treasure. Perhaps a priceless pearl hidden away. (Matthew 13: 44-45) What if the wife is the field in the parables? Hmm….
When David and I started telling our stories, we discovered the people around us who seemed to have perfect marriages were actually struggling in the same ways we were. Certainly, a lot of the challenges boiled down to communication. (Get your copy of Marriage Conversations: from coexisting to cherished, which I originally wrote for our kids.)
So often wives feel unheard by their husbands. Surely, the enemy of our souls tries to thwart every one of God’s basic principles for marriage. Yet, wives love it when a husband cherishes us this way!
Feeding the Imagination and Faith of Our Kids
If ever there was an overarching principle about feeding the imagination and faith of our kids, it’s cherishing marriage and family. No wonder Bethlehem Books has so much success choosing the inspiring books they rescue for the next generation.
Naturally, these amazing conversations with Jack helped me appreciate the intentional way the Sharpe’s and their fellow oblates have sought to reveal God’s glory in their everyday work at Bethlehem. Nobody pays me to promote Bethlehem Books. I just like sharing good options with YOU!
YOU are also partners in stirring up the faith and goodness of our hurting culture. None of us can do it alone. But TOGETHER our voices are a mighty force for good!
Thank YOU for speaking up with compassion and mercy for all that is dear to God’s heart. Please keep up the good work! I LOVE being in this with YOU!
🙂
cathy
May we pray together?
Dear good Father, we’ll be celebrating the Savior’s resurrection again soon. This seems like a good year for reminders about Your faithful love for each one of us. Thank you for the rebirth all around us in the fresh grass, the blossoming trees, all the new life. Mercifully, You are our faithful Companion as we figure out how life looks now. Thank You for hearing to our prayers. For Your unfailing love and direction, we thank You. Help us cherish each other with tender wholeheartedness. Teach us to live together as we search out Your glory with each other. Bless us now because that’s Your heart’s desire. In Jesus’s name. Amen
We LOVE to hear from YOU!
How do you know when your spouse is listening? When have headed one direction only to discover God had different plans for you? Which childhood books changed your life?
P.S. What to Watch For Next–
The Uncut Conversation–Next week, Brooke Frick and I share some spontaneous thoughts about motherhood just for YOU! Author of Hands Full, her amazing hubby pulled their RV up in our driveway and we enjoyed a joy-filled visit. Plus, I get to pass along a special recipe Brooke sent me from her own momma.
Then, just in time for Easter, Native Tylerite Paula Quinn, author of The Questions God Asks Us, joins me on Fireside Talk Radio. As a long-time advocate in the court system, Paula understands how compassionately God still reaches out today! (Shout out to our joyful friend who introduced us!❤️)
Plus, I’m looking forward to sharing an interview with my friend Erin Kerry about conversational adventures. (Find her wisdom about Sparking Wholeness and The Brain-Gut Connection.)
Additionally, cancer surviver Nancy Kay Grace shares some powerful stuff about how God’s grace looks in families.
In a few weeks, Re/Engage Director Susan Cox shares her story with authenticity that will touch your heart.
Our Friends At Valerosa
Valerosa means courage. You can now pick up a signed copy of my books at Valerosa Designs and Gallery! (Find out how one devoted woman, my friend Neita Fran Ward Neita, unleashes creativity.)
Don’t Forget– You can invite me to join your Sunday school class or book club in person or through a special zoom link. (Contact me to join you.)
Order online: The Well: The Art of Drawing Out Authentic Conversations. or The Well: The Art of Drawing Out Authentic Conversations.
We’d LOVE to have YOU on the TEAM!
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With joys, we announce plans for our Spring 2021 Book Bananza unfold in the next few weeks. If you or an author you love would like to sign books with us, contact me or the amazing Gina Butler.
Cathy Krafve, Speaker, Blogger, Podcaster, and author of The Well: The Art of Drawing Out Authentic Conversations and Marriage Conversation: From Coexisting to Cherished. We invite you to join the Fireside Tribe. Truth with a Texas Twang.
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