We are called to live differently—
not with defiance,
but with the quiet courage
of those who trust God’s hand
more than their own defence.
Do your friends see anything different about you?
Not the words you say,
but the way you live:
how you work when no one praises you,
how you love when it is not returned,
how you stay gentle when the world grows hard.
Everything begins with this hard word—
submit.
Not cower. Not comply.
But willingly stand under
what God has placed above you,
the way Jesus did—
free, yet obedient,
wounded, yet without hate.
So when your boss is harsh,
or your world is unfair,
remember the strange strength
of the cross—
gentleness that endures,
love that does not need revenge.
Wives,
the world has used your submission
to bind you.
Men have quoted Scripture
and missed its heartbeat.
But God’s word does not diminish you—
it dignifies you.
Peter spoke into a world
that did not see your worth,
and he said:
you have the power to show
what the gospel looks like
by how you live.
This is not weakness,
it is strength under control,
To live with a beauty
that does not fade—
a calm, grounded spirit,
anchored in God’s faithfulness.
Like Sarah, you may laugh,
you may argue,
you may take matters into your own hands—
but in the end,
faith calls you to trust
that God keeps His promises,
even when you cannot see how.
Husbands, too—
use your strength to shelter, not to rule.
Treat her as a fellow heir
of the gracious gift of life.
Power becomes holy
when it protects,
not when it demands.
This is the gospel made visible:
each life bending down
so that love may rise.
And when we live this way—
at work, in marriage,
in every act of trust—
the world sees
a glimpse of Jesus,
who submitted Himself
to set us free.
Original message by Andrew West & Jodi Crain,
The Bridge Church Macquarie Park NSW
9 November 2025
The Afterword 
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