The Ballestero Blog

The World’s Greatest Spousal Insurance Policy!

Today Marcia, my beautiful wife of 45 years, and I were riding down the Turnpike in Tulsa listening to XM Radio’s Enlighten on Channel 34. It’s a Southern Gospel Station. Presently a familiar sounding group came on and I read their name on the player. It confirmed what my ears were hearing.

My mind went back many years. I thought of the times I had been in church services with these people, but those days are now forever gone. They are just distant memories.

They once were Jesus Name, Apostolic. I knew them when the ladies in the group had long uncut hair. They wore no makeup or jewelry back then. The men had good haircuts and no facial hair. Somehow, things changed for them. They left the Oneness people seeking more popularity and acceptance from the Trinitarians. They compromised their beliefs about salvation’s requirements and the God-head in the process.

Along the way, they all met with divorce. Their divorces didn’t draw them back to God or to a place of rededication, but their new spouses helped push them even further away from the old landmarks and from truth.

Thinking on these things, my mind reflected on the history of the city of Bethel in the Bible. It was made famous by Jacob, his dream and his covenant with God. At that time, Bethel was only a flat rock that Jacob used for a pillow that night.

The next time we read about Bethel, it is a place filled with people who did not stay loyal to God. Idols were now very common in Bethel. It even became a headquarters for idolatrous calf worship. In Bethel, of all places!

The prophet Amos said that Bethel would “come to naught.” Amos 5:5. Jeremiah hung his head and said that Israel “was ashamed of Bethel.” Jer. 48:13.

Later, Hosea called Beth-el, (which means the house of God) ‘Beth-aven’ which means a house of adultery.

Thinking on that sad progression from the House of God, to House of Idolatry, and then to House of Adultery, I became deeply bothered in my spirit.

In prayer some years ago, I asked the Lord, “How did Bethel go from idolatry to adultery?”

It was like the Lord dropped this thought into my spirit… “The progression was easy. They’re both fathered by the same spirit, the spirit of unfaithfulness.”

If that’s true, then the greatest insurance policy any of us can give our spouse is to be faithful to God. Because, if we are faithful to God, then we will also be faithful to our spouse! It’s that simple. Are you FAITHFUL to God?