In addition, I've heard of several more who report having to spend their entire wedding reception explaining to other women why they would choose to promise such a thing.

 Even after my own wedding where the pastor spoke extensively on Ephesians 5:22-33 and I promised to obey my husband, I was accosted by a woman I did not even know, a wife of one of my husband's co-workers.

 "You don't really believe that stuff, do you?" she asked.
 
 "What stuff?" I asked, seriously confused.

 She blinked and shook her head. "All that obey and stuff."

 "Well.... yes..." says I, "um... it is in the Bible."

 "But it's so... ancient!"

 Ancient? I'm sure my eyes betrayed my thoughts because she abruptly changed the subject. I guess I had lead a sheltered life, but I'd never heard God's word called Ancient. I'd always been taught... correctly taught... that God's word was alive and relevant for today. And it is.

 Young brides should not have to decide whether or not to promise to obey their husbands when the Bible commands they do so anyway. They should not have to feel ashamed or agonize over it, and they certainly should not have to spend their wedding reception defending their decision. It is in God's word... period. Enough said.

 Besides, the feminists have had their chance. They have tried things their way for a number of years and look where it's gotten us. Nearly half of all marriages.... even Christian marriages... end in divorce. There's obviously something wrong with their philosophy.

 Maybe if more brides stood strong and promised to obey their husbands, more marriages would stand rather than fall.

 Unfortunately, the third wave of feminism has ushered in what is probably the most immodest dress in history, and definitely in the history of the United States, which makes it a challenge for those of us who want to teach our daughters to dress modestly. After all, our culture has equated modern femininity with provocativeness, which means we have to try harder than ever to teach our daughters what God truly meant when he created femininity.

 This is not so hard when your daughters are small. Most little girls inherently want to dress femininely. I remember as a little girl all I wanted to wear were dresses, the frillier the better. My mother had to make me wear pants to school on gym days. It is when little girls get school aged and conscious of style that they start to imitate culture in the way they dress.

 If you homeschool, you may be able to escape this for several years, IF your daughters doesn't watch a lot of television and has friends whose mothers are interested in modesty as well. But once culture catches up with you, you might have a battle on your hands.

 I am a firm believer that kids (especially preteens and teenagers) will tell you what you want to hear and then go out and do what they want to do. My children have had friends, both homeschooled and public schooled alike, whose parents are convinced their daughters are little angels (because of what they're saying and how they're behaving at home) when in fact, they are putting on makeup and changing their clothing the moment they get out of sight of their parents. Regardless of what they're saying or doing at home, if your daughters do not have modest values in their own hearts, you have little chance of getting them to adhere to them. Shaping these values is a delicate balance of parental authority, parental compromise, and parental teaching.

 It is great if you can start early shaping their beliefs on feminine and modest dress. You might sparingly point out immodestly dressed females on television or in the shopping malls. I say "sparingly" because if you overdo it, you start to sound like a nag or a broken record. And be careful how you point out the problem so that you don't teach your daughter a hateful, judging attitude. You might say something along the lines of "I'm sure she doesn't realize it, but..." or "We should pray for that woman so that God will show her that she's beautiful without all those revealing clothes."

 Buying clothing for your daughter is a HUGE challenge nowadays. We've spent countless hours looking for clothing that both myself and my daughter can feel good about. I have had to compromise several times, and she has had to compromise as well. We went through a couple of years where I would just cringe whenever she wore a spaghetti strap top (one of our parental compromises) or where she would pout for an hour because she wasn't permitted to buy that strapless top (one of those things we wouldn't compromise on).

 Thankfully she's now coming out of that and showing signs of making more modest choices. I was elated a few days ago when she was horrified at some of the suggestive costume patterns for little girls in the catalogs.

 "Mom, they're trying to make these little girls look like hoes (harlots)!" she said, shaking her head in disbelief.

 She recently decided her bust has grown too large for spaghetti strap tops (hallelujah!) and asked me to buy her some new tops (I happily complied). I am thankful as well that her shorts have steadily grown longer, and she rarely wears that mini skirt that used to be long enough and then drew up in the dryer so that we argued over it time and time again. She has even started to police her younger cousin's clothing choices... lol.

 Never underestimate, by the way, the value (or hindrance) of having the influence of older kids helping your daughter choose how she will dress.
Thankfully my daughter has older brothers she looks up to who threw a fit every time she put on a spaghetti strap top and who threatened to not let her out of the house in her mini skirt. And my older son's fiance' (who my daughter loves like a sister) was great in helping me to point out the outrageousness of the way some little girls are permitted to dress.

 We still have a ways to go. I never want to give the impression that our family has arrived (we are SO far from it), but I feel we are on the right track, at least as far as modesty is concerned, and I thank the good Lord for it.

(Side Note: I have never required my daughter to dress in all dresses since I do not feel it is a commandment of God. Though she loves pretty, feminine things, she does not have the desire to do so at this time. She is ultra-feminine in other ways, however. By her own choice her hair has grown halfway down her back, and she loves the womanly arts, especially cooking. I am in high hopes that one day both my daughter and my daughter-in-love-to-be will make the choice to emphasize their femininity to the maximum, but until that time I do not plan to nag or badger them as I feel it would be counterproductive.)

The feminist movement officially began with only a handful of discontented women who decided to launch a rebellion against their government, their husbands, and society.

Though Elizabeth Cady Stanton is often hailed as one of the first and foremost leaders of the feminist movement, you will rarely find it revealed anywhere on the internet or otherwise that her husband was so upset by his wife's rebellion and her participation in the first feminist rally organized by his wife and others in 1848 at Seneca Falls, NY that he abruptly left town*.

Even though these women are hailed as heroines by our culture today, we as Christian women should form our own opinion of their rebellious actions, formed through scriptural knowledge. One such scripture to be aware of is found in 1 Samuel 15:23:

 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry...

So already we see we have a Biblical problem with the roots of feminism. Add that to the fact that Mrs. Stanton (again, one of the foremost leaders of the feminist movement) had a rather dismal view of the Bible and Christianity in general as evidenced by numerous quotes attributed to her, and we begin to realize the whole tree of feminism is rotten right down to the roots.

Hence it should not come as a surprise that during the second wave of feminism a 1971 Declaration of Feminism reads:

Today, abortion and lesbian rights are among the top two priorities listed on the National Organization of Women's website, yet still many of the ideas and philosophies of feminism are becoming rooted even in our churches. How could this be? And worse yet, what are the results?

*Based on actual newspaper article printed July 19, 1848 and reprinted in Chronicle of America.
Publisher: Jacques Legrand, Editor-in-Chief John W. Kirshon.

 Even as early as the book of Deuteronomy the Bible has something to say about the proper clothing of a woman:

 The Lord feels so strongly about this, in fact, that He refers to a woman wearing a man's clothing an "abomination" -- something that is loathed by God. If our outer appearance was of no consequence to God, why would He use such strong language in the preceding scripture?

So what does this verse mean, "that which pertaineth to a man"?

Since during those times men and women both wore something akin to robes, I believe this verse is highly dependent on the culture of the day. Our culture today accepts pants on both men and women, and pants are made for both men and women. Therefore it stands to reason that a woman wearing women's pants is dressed as a woman, not a man.

However, the item of clothing that truly separates a man from a woman in today's culture is the female dress or skirt. When one draws a stick person, he puts pants on him to make him seem male and a skirt on her to make her seem female.

Hence we know which door to enter for the ladies' restroom.

I do not believe it is wrong for a woman to wear a pair of pants fashioned for a woman, but to be truly feminine... to look the part of a lady... it is infinitely preferrable to wear a dress.

Again, the Bible does not command that a woman wear her hair long. Note the verse says, "if". However, it does explain that a woman's hair was given to her for a covering. Long hair is another of the identifiers of a woman and a mark of femininity.

Side note: In our culture it is expected that older women should cut their hair. This is another lie told to us by society. The verse says, "if a woman have long hair," not "if a young woman...". Old women, young women, middle-aged... it doesn't matter. Long hair is a sign of femininity and is beautiful on a woman.

Here the Bible stresses the manner and inner heart of a woman rather than the outward appearance; however, we can learn from this verse that the Lord would have us dress simply rather than elaborately, which is a sign of vanity. I'm not saying we should not wear all the beautiful colors He has given us or enjoy a pretty bit of lace or ruffle. Rather we should not feel like we have to have the most expensive clothing, elaborate hairstyles, or chests full of jewelry to look beautiful and feminine. A woman is at her most beautiful when she does not seek to call attention to herself through her appearance.

What some are calling "the third wave of feminism" has ushered in what is probably the most immodest clothing of all time. Young men can scarcely even go to church nowadays without being confronted with a scantily clad young lady. Of course the Bible tells him it is a sin for him to even look upon a woman with lust in his heart (Matthew 5:28), so what is he to do? Go about with blinders on?

Our culture has told women the lie that it is a compliment for a man to look upon her with lust in his heart, when in fact it is a sin to him, and I believe, also to her if she has dressed in a manner to entice him. Any woman who feels it is not her responsibility to dress modestly in order to save a man from sin should study 1 Timothy 2:9.

Though our culture might tell us that showing our bodies is a sign of womanhood, the Bible tells us that modesty is a mark of true femininity.

Until we happen upon 1 Peter 3:1-2(KJV):  Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;  while they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear.
 

What we see from scripture is that the Lord mandates a wife's subjection to her husband whether he is a Christian or not. We see it is even more important that a wife submit to a husband who is not obedient to the Lord because from that reverence and obedience, he can be won to Christ without a word from anyone else.

There is little doubt that submission to a non-Christian husband could be a heavier cross to bear; however, the greater benefits of winning him to Christ cannot be measured.

In the meantime, ladies, the Lord is still on his throne, and He is still most interested in caring for his daughters. In faith, obey the Lord's command to submit to your husband, and He will take care of you.

It wasn't until she was around 18 months old that I became aware of how big a responsibility this was. I was helping to put together my sister's wedding and was about as stressed out as I'd ever been. Since the family of my sister's fiance' had promised to help and hadn't followed through, I was even more stressed and not just a little bit angry. Stomping through the house grumbling, I turned just in time to see my daughter stomp her foot and let out a few grumbles of her own, her beautiful little face screwed up in fury.

Well, my anger left me in a whoosh and I repented, realizing I had not been teaching my daughter a servant's heart, but rather an arrogant and angry attitude.

The fact is, you can tell your daughter how she should behave all day long, but until you model it yourself, it is going to make little impression on her. That is why it is so important that we ourselves learn what Biblical Womanhood looks like so we can teach it to our daughters.

So how do you spend your time? Do you let her see you studying the Bible or listening to praise music? Do you serve and give to others with a cheerful heart? Do you speak respectfully of and to her father?

Remember, the one thing that is going to teach your daughter the most is your own example. What will she learn from you?

 I have no doubt these arguments have been circling around since the beginning of time... or at least soon after Adam and Eve were kicked out of the garden.

 So why should you submit to a husband who is less spiritual than yourself, or who makes less money, or who has more problems in his life than you?

 Because God said so....

 All authority comes from God, and He chose to give it to your husband, despite your own perceived superiority. I'm sorry if this sounds really blunt, but if you refuse to submit to your husband for whatever reason (unless he asks you to sin) you are committing a sin.

 But...

 No buts... the Bible is clear.

 Enough said.

I love this quote from a friend's grandmother when she first learned about a thing called "Women's Liberation". I think she was probably a wise woman.

Maybe she knew how blessed she was to be protected and pampered by a husband who loved her. Or maybe she had the foresight to realize that this so-called "Women's Liberation" would actually put women in bondage, robbing them of their rightful place in society, causing untold miseries in their lives and those of their children. Whatever her reason, I couldn't agree more.

I am a stay at home wife. I have the privilege of homeschooling my children. I never have to worry with the finances or maintaining the car, and if there is a heavy job to be done my husband will not even allow me to touch it.

I am the first to admit I am quite spoiled. My husband is kind and considerate of my feelings. If I ask for something, he will do all in his power to get it for me, often sacrificing his own desires for mine, and if I express a different opinion than his own, he gives careful consideration to it.

And all I have to do is submit to my husband.

How could something that is made to sound so hard, that is decried aloud in the streets, that is feared and maligned and misunderstood, actually be so... easy? For I have found that it is not a burden to submit to my husband. It is not a thing to be hated and it is certainly not something to be feared. It is something that has brought joy to my marriage, to both my husband and myself. This should not come as a surprise to Christians. After all, the Bible does teach us that as wives we are to submit to our husbands (Ephesians 5:22). When did we start believing Satan's lie that it would make us miserable? Our Lord is a loving Father, both of his sons and his daughters. He knows what is best for us. To listen to the decriers would be foolish.

Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands, and it will bring you nothing but joy.