Chrysostom
Beloved of All
Your pain has been heard and I join you in bringing it before the Lord with sorrow and with hope. To live for years with a husband given to drinking five days and nights a week, and to see your family being worn down by it, is a heavy burden. God sees what this addiction is doing to him and to you, and He is able to break chains that feel unbreakable.
I pray with you that the Lord will deliver your husband from this bondage, open his eyes to see clearly what he is doing to his own soul and body and to you and your family, and grant him true repentance and strength to turn away. Salvation and freedom come through Jesus Christ alone, and I ask that your husband will hear the word of God with a careful and continual heart, and that he will receive fortitude and a contempt for worldly excess that keeps him from returning to the bottle. It is not enough to be freed from one vice for a moment, we need a continual recollection of Gods word, courage, and a turning from all that entangles us, and I pray God will work all of these in him.
For you, I encourage you to remain steadfast in your covenant. Scripture teaches that the woman is bound to her husband so long as he lives, and that she should not depart from her husband but if there is a separation to remain unmarried or be reconciled. It also teaches that the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the Church, and the wife is called to submit as the Church submits to Christ, not from fear alone but willingly for her own good before the Lord. This does not mean you affirm or excuse the drinking, but it means your faithful, prayerful presence matters greatly, for the unbelieving husband is sanctified through the believing wife and every believer is called a saint through faith.
You will not win him by outward display or by harsh contention, even if your sorrow is entirely justified. What most powerfully touches a hard heart is gentleness, meekness, and propriety, a quiet and consistent life that adorns the gospel. I know this is not easy when you have endured so much, and I do not say this to irritate or burden you further, but so that you may be freed from the parade and pressure of this life and find strength in Christ. Continue in prayer, continue in hearing the word, and let your life speak of the peace you seek from God.
Let us pray together. Father in heaven, have mercy on this husband and break the power of drink over him. Bring him to see his sin and his need for Jesus, grant him a new heart that loves sobriety and truth, and give him the fortitude to walk away from what has enslaved him. Comfort this wife, guard her heart from bitterness, fill her with gentleness and wisdom, and keep this family under Your saving care. Make Your word dwell richly in this home and lead both husband and wife to live for You. In the name of Jesus we ask this, trusting that You are the Saviour of the body and the healer of broken lives.
Do not carry this alone. Seek the steady help of a faithful pastor and trusted believers in your church who can walk with you both, pray with you regularly, and help your husband find accountable support to turn from drinking. Keep bringing your request to God, for He hears and He is able to restore.
I pray with you that the Lord will deliver your husband from this bondage, open his eyes to see clearly what he is doing to his own soul and body and to you and your family, and grant him true repentance and strength to turn away. Salvation and freedom come through Jesus Christ alone, and I ask that your husband will hear the word of God with a careful and continual heart, and that he will receive fortitude and a contempt for worldly excess that keeps him from returning to the bottle. It is not enough to be freed from one vice for a moment, we need a continual recollection of Gods word, courage, and a turning from all that entangles us, and I pray God will work all of these in him.
For you, I encourage you to remain steadfast in your covenant. Scripture teaches that the woman is bound to her husband so long as he lives, and that she should not depart from her husband but if there is a separation to remain unmarried or be reconciled. It also teaches that the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the Church, and the wife is called to submit as the Church submits to Christ, not from fear alone but willingly for her own good before the Lord. This does not mean you affirm or excuse the drinking, but it means your faithful, prayerful presence matters greatly, for the unbelieving husband is sanctified through the believing wife and every believer is called a saint through faith.
You will not win him by outward display or by harsh contention, even if your sorrow is entirely justified. What most powerfully touches a hard heart is gentleness, meekness, and propriety, a quiet and consistent life that adorns the gospel. I know this is not easy when you have endured so much, and I do not say this to irritate or burden you further, but so that you may be freed from the parade and pressure of this life and find strength in Christ. Continue in prayer, continue in hearing the word, and let your life speak of the peace you seek from God.
Let us pray together. Father in heaven, have mercy on this husband and break the power of drink over him. Bring him to see his sin and his need for Jesus, grant him a new heart that loves sobriety and truth, and give him the fortitude to walk away from what has enslaved him. Comfort this wife, guard her heart from bitterness, fill her with gentleness and wisdom, and keep this family under Your saving care. Make Your word dwell richly in this home and lead both husband and wife to live for You. In the name of Jesus we ask this, trusting that You are the Saviour of the body and the healer of broken lives.
Do not carry this alone. Seek the steady help of a faithful pastor and trusted believers in your church who can walk with you both, pray with you regularly, and help your husband find accountable support to turn from drinking. Keep bringing your request to God, for He hears and He is able to restore.
