Husband does not want to come to Gospel meetings

[Pucci]

The gospel church that I have been attending recently is having these Gospel tent meetings for 3 weeks in an open grass area just outside our building. It is literally a 3 minute walk from where I live. I have been bring my 2 1/2 year old son because in addition to the adult tent meetings there is a smaller tent for children's meetings.

Yesterday evening my husband, who is usually at work at around this time, was at home and after we had dinner I asked my husband if he would like to come. Even before I finished the sentence he blurted out "NO!". Then he said that he had some further cleaning to do. He fell asleep while me and my son went. I came back from the meeting 1 1/2 hours later and he was still sleeping :rolleyes.

Sometimes I think what's the use. If the father doesn't care about God or about knowing God then my son, when he gets older will just follow the footsteps of his father. It's easier to take the worldly route than follow the Christian route.

I thought about asking his parent's who live on the floor above us if they would like to go. (They are Chinese and this Church has a lot of Chinese immigrants who have become Christians). But I have this feeling they won't want to come and then they will get suspicious that I am trying to convert them to religion. That's why I get very intimidated about such things. I feel like I am useless I can't convince a fly.

[ZeldaCA]

Pucci, I think it can take YEARS sometimes to convince someone we love to be truly alive in their faith! And we can't push too hard or it just makes them stubborn and resentful. I've been after my DH for three years to have a Bible Study at home with the kids once a week. We finally started it last month, and it's been a blessing to us all!

Remember that God is working on them too, in ways that you can't see. You're not alone in it, even though it looks like you are.

I always think of it like water dripping on a stone. You might think that the stone is so hard that mere water would never, ever change it. But, with enough time, just a gentle drip of water can carve into and change the shape of a stone much more than you could ever imagine.

So you are the water, and your DH is the stone. :)

I would invite your relatives to come, also. The worst that can happen is they say no, right? But if you ask them to join you every time you can, maybe someday they will say yes! If there are other Chinese families going, they may have friends who go, and the invitation from you may be the final thing that makes them say "yes."

You just never know, so keep the faith! :hug

[lisaann]

I Corinthians 7:14 14For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.


Even if you are the only believing parent, as you can see from this verse, you make all the difference in the world for your children. Many of us here, in fact I wonder if the majority of us, are married to unbelievers. Don't lose hope, the Lord see's your efforts on His behalf. :hug

[Janh7]

When my husband and I first married, I was a believer and he wasn't. I took our baby to church each Sunday, quietly, without making a big deal out of it. One Sunday, he asked if he could go with us and now he has been saved for about 28 years.

I think your son will always remember that his mom took him to church and it will stick with him no matter what his father does. You cannot answer to God for your husbands actions nor are you supposed to. You can only answer to God for what YOU do....and by taking your son to church and teaching him in the ways of God you are doing the right thing. It does matter.

[saint-in-training]

When my husband and I first married, I was a believer and he wasn't. I took our baby to church each Sunday, quietly, without making a big deal out of it. One Sunday, he asked if he could go with us and now he has been saved for about 28 years.

I think your son will always remember that his mom took him to church and it will stick with him no matter what his father does. You cannot answer to God for your husbands actions nor are you supposed to. You can only answer to God for what YOU do....and by taking your son to church and teaching him in the ways of God you are doing the right thing. It does matter.

Absolutely! Can't you hear it? "My mom started taking me to church when I was..." My parents took me to church off and on when I was a kid, but I lived the way I wanted when I got to teen years. But you know what? It stuck with me. And sometimes it takes being an adult to finally "get it" I think.
I married a catholic. I had no idea what I was getting into! I was always taken to a baptist church growing up. So, in the beginning neither of us attended church, so it didn't really matter. We got married at a JP when we were in the military, and no family came. (In PA and FL, we were in NC) I don't know now why we didn't tell them. They may have come up. Anyway, it was easier for us too because we were of two faiths. And it eliminated the frustration it might have caused.
Anyway, when the day came that I wanted to go to church, he didn't go. I took the kids on my own. He heard about it, and ofcourse once in a while I bugged him. But no, he wasn't going. We fought and he would say, why does it have to be a baptist church?! I thought because that's the way I believe.
A day came that the church started to have issues, and split. He heard all about it, and then watched as I tried to find another church. Visiting around. I asked him to come, he said I'm not visiting. When you find something then maybe I'll go. I found a church I really enjoyed, and they were so nice, and the word was being taught out of the KJV. A simple bible church. No denomination. Just the bible and bible believers. So, he came for a long time. Some days he would stay home but not often. He even helped with VBS.
But a day came when this church split also. It was all very strange. And so I (after a while) found another bible church, but it is quite a drive. So, he did come, but has more often than before staying home. He plays a game with me that goes like this. I get up at 8am, I come in at 9am and tap on him. It's 9 o'clock! He burries his head in his blankets. It's 9:10!! No movement. I knock a few things around to make sure I make some noise. But he still won't get up. So, I leave on my own with the kids.
I come home to find an empty pot of coffee and a husband playing videogames. YES! This is frustrating! But also there is no lunch prepared for us. No thought of lunch. A friend of mine recently said she would turn around with the kids and go right back out the door to have lunch somewhere. I might just try that out, BUT take heart. It takes time. My DH was just as bent on not going in the beginning. But over time my conversation with him kind of softened him I think. I yearn for the days when we sat in the pew reading the bible together, but I'll just have to have patience, longsuffering!

[My Abba's Child]

Anyone had success with situations like this with the help of the book entitled, The Power of a Praying Wife? I've not read it myself past the first chapter or so, and haven't really committed to going through the "program", anyone else who HAS and had success? If so, you might try getting this book to read through and see if it helps you, too. =)

In His love,

[My Abba's Child]

There's a dear lady at our church... she's been on the welcoming ministry for I guess about EVER. hehe She welcomes everyone, makes sure they know where the nursery, correct Sunday School classes, etc... are, gets them a bulletin, that sorta thing. For 35 years, she's been attending church without her husband who was a non-believer. She's been praying and asking others in the church to pray for him to come to a saving faith in Christ Jesus for those 35 years. Well, it worked! After 35 years, he finally humbled himself before Christ as a sinner and accepted His gift of salvation! :yeah It was an awesome and glorious time for the whole church, but I'd imagine it was pure amazing miracle for this family!

Remember Timothy? Paul's spiritual son? He learned to love Jesus due to the faithful teachings of his mother and grandmother. His father was a pagan.

In His love,

[BlessedAssurance]

My husband and I were both believers when we married. However, I had a LOT more faith than he did. And I've been able to lean on God for years longer than him. In 13 years of marriage I've been able to watch him grow spiritually. What a blessing. :yeah

But, the best thing our church does is it's children's choirs. From age 4 until HS graduation, children can participate. We have musicals, Sunday school singers, Christmas pageants, etc.

The point, of course, is that the CHILDREN ask Dad to come see them sing. My husband was very good about going to church, but my in laws were lost. Now, because of the singers, MIL is saved, and FIL is teetering on the fence.

Maybe you could start something that Dad has to do for the kids at least once a month. Even if it's not a great church, you can always teach your family the problems it has. If YOU get involved, I think many husbands and Fathers then become involved. :hat

[Dedee]

I have an unsaved husband. He went to Church with us on and off for 9 years. He would do the go up to the altar to get out of trouble with me. False confession and then our Church did Way of the Master with Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort.Evangelism training. Very Biblical and they explained through the word of God. That without God, a person has no desire to go to Church. And I have actually met people who use the Church, God's house for social reasons. But, the Church is supposed to be the body of believers. I guess this is why the Lord said in the last days the tares and wheat would be together.Saved and unsaved people filling the Church pews. Number 1 the Lord says in Isaiah 1 to come before him with clean hands and a clean heart. In Acts, it talks about the body of believers when they came together with one accord, the Holy Spirit would descend and then power would be given to the believers to go out and witness to the unsaved. Then people believed, repented and converted. Now, my husband would go to Church just to see who I'm associating with and doing. But, now I don't want him there till his heart is right before the Lord. And that he would be going to honor God, and not just to check up on me. It is a mess, this is why the Lord said we are not to be unequally yoked. So much tension and strife here. Please pray for me that I would know how to speak to him. I go from saying nothing and stuffing everything in, to actually spewing like a tea kettle. I have read marriage books till I'm sick of looking at them. One of them if it had been mine I would have burned it. I have read one and if my husband would read it, I know it would help him. But, he hates to read. So please if the Lord lays me on your heart. Don't wonder about me but just pray fervently!

[funmudder]

When my husband and I first married, I was a believer and he wasn't. I took our baby to church each Sunday, quietly, without making a big deal out of it. One Sunday, he asked if he could go with us and now he has been saved for about 28 years.

I think your son will always remember that his mom took him to church and it will stick with him no matter what his father does. You cannot answer to God for your husbands actions nor are you supposed to. You can only answer to God for what YOU do....and by taking your son to church and teaching him in the ways of God you are doing the right thing. It does matter.

Amen sister :hug

How often do we read in the Bible that the influence of the mother carries much weight. Every evil king was noted as the son of his mother such as the father having many wives (Solomon) and not really rearing the kids in the way they should go? Mommas pull a LOT of weight.

Pro 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Remember Timothy who was raised by his momma and grandmother, he is a huge testament of persevering in motherhood to train up a child :hug