1 Peter 3:1-7

Summary: Just kidding, more practical examples. Peter maps out how submission in marriage can help win people over for Christ. Wives can be valued for their actions and not just their rhetoric or beauty. Husbands can work with their wives and not just order them around. By treating each other as actual humans, they can be a witness just by living life. 

Response: As I get older, I start to realize when I'm in a no-win situation. Peter is at the ready to stick his foot in his mouth here. I might almost have him untangled, but he's still a bit hopeless. It almost sounds like he's focusing (weirdly) on how other people's wives should dress and do their hair, but I can try to force a reading where the culture of the time had a wife's beauty as the only redeeming quality, that they may as well not exist if they aren't pretty, and Peter is trying to say that they have worth all the same. In the same way, I can see Peter telling husbands they can force their way on their wives, or I could see it as a step up from considering them to be subhuman. I'm trying to be charitable here!

In that case, I think Peter has a point. A couple working together well is a powerful thing, and two spouses committed to the work of the Church is often a recipe for success. I am constantly in awe of the grace, patience, and perseverance my own wife shows for our kids and others' kids as well. Getting to work with her is a joy and a privilege. Lord, help me to see it and appreciate it.