These past days reminded me that good intentions are not enough. Sometimes the outcome is not what you hoped for, and even a “good intention” can trigger sorrow.

And that’s exactly what happened: in the middle of the new melodies, notes began to fall out of tune, familiar noises from the past that came knocking again.

I spent several days feeling upset with myself, wishing I could turn back time for a moment and correct my mistake. Maybe my immediate response should have been gratitude… just days earlier the Holy Spirit had been speaking to me about that so clearly. But that wasn’t my reaction.

There are moments in life when, even in the midst of new songs, we will still have to feel the weight of our mistakes, take a deep breath, acknowledge what went wrong, ask for forgiveness… and then tune our hearts back to Life, discovering that even in those hard moments, new melodies are hidden.

These days, a biblical passage became more alive than ever, one that many have turned into a cliché:

“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ…
For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord…
For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the Church…”
Ephesians 5:24–26

These verses have been greatly misunderstood. Some women reject them because of past wounds. Some men misuse them, abusing their authority.

But when you understand the heart of the passage—and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal it—you discover a beautiful truth:
Submission and respect are the fruit of true love.

In Ephesians 5, Paul is not describing a structure of control. He is revealing a divine melody where each note has a purpose:

The husband loves as Christ loved.
A love that gives, covers, protects, guides, restores, and never manipulates.

The wife respects as the Church respects Christ.
A respect that honors, listens, trusts, and submits because she knows she is loved.

Submission does not come from fear. It does not come from obligation. It does not come from weakness. Submission is born from love received.

When a man loves like Christ, the wife’s submission does not oppress—
it brings rest. They walk together, they stand in agreement; it feels like safety, like covering, like home.

Because respect is the way a wife “loves” her husband, just as a husband loves by laying down his life for his wife.

This is why Paul uses different words. For a woman, love means security. For a man, love is experienced as respect. And between the two, a song is born—one that reflects Jesus.

If we read all of Ephesians 5, the message becomes even clearer. Paul begins by saying: “Be imitators of God.” That is the context.

Submission cannot be understood without this initial invitation: to be like Christ. To love like Him. To respond like Him. To live in the light as He does.

And right before speaking about marriage, he gives us the key note:

“Be filled with the Holy Spirit… singing to the Lord from your heart and giving thanks for everything.”

That is the melody of a home where Jesus is the center and the Holy Spirit dwells:
gratitude, music in the heart, fullness of the Spirit, mutual honor.

These past days, I lived all of this… in my own home.
After a wrong decision, my husband forgave me, protected me, covered me. Once again, he laid down his life for me, he became my shield, my support. He helped me see my mistake, and even in sadness, he loved. He reminded me who I am and walked beside me.

Today, just days away from our 25th anniversary, I have no doubt: He loves me the way Christ loves His Church.

And my response? Respect. Honor. Listening. Gratitude.

Once again, I choose to remain under his covering, because that is my safe place.

Submission is not mistreatment. It is not backwardness. It is not oppression. It is a wise decision made by women who know their design and purpose. It is the natural response to love.

To close…
I want to encourage you to keep singing the new things God has for you. Find those notes, those melodies woven into the everyday. We don’t have perfect lives, but we do have a perfect God in everything He does.

And I want you to know that hope is real. Marriage does work. True love does exist. It is the love that stays. The love that corrects. The love that covers. The love that restores.

Spend time with God. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you, to give you wisdom, to help you see His truth.

Keep singing.