I should have known better than to vent to Dad.

What is it about parents that can make a grown woman feel like she's 10 years old again? Only my dad has the ability to totally use one sentence and lower my 5'4" frame down to 3' and leave me looking for words to reply with.

The past couple of weeks I have vented about the ex, the fiance, and the church. I've vented on my blog, to Vance, to my girlfriends and to my parents. My dad was done. He stopped me in mid-stream this past week and said to me "Do you want to be responsible for his soul?"

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN,????

"Sheri, do you want to be standing up at the pearly gates and have to explain to God why in his name, you pitched such a fit about sharing your church and were so angry about it that it forced him to quit going altogether? I want you to think about it THAT way."

I'm sure the dead silence my dad got back was the response he was looking for. He probably heard crickets while i mulled that over. I don't care how much I wanted to be right, i don't think there were big enough panties to wear to stand in front of God and EXPLAIN THAT. See, that's what you get when your grandfather was a preacher, a dad who never missed a point from the pew.

I pulled out my Kristin Armstrong devotional and un-turned one of the dog eared pages and reminded myself of words that she wrote going through her divorce. The verse she based it on was 1 Peter 3:1.

"If any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives."

Listen to Kristin's words here:
As women, we must be alluring, not pushy. Our behavior shown to our husband, our ex-husband, or any relationship should speak loudly without words. A gentle spirit, a peaceful demeanor, a forgiving heart, and an inspired sense of morality are some features of a godly woman.

Even if a marriage is severed, it does not mean that the effects of a godly (ex) wife is diminished. We will always have some role to play in the spiritual journey of the men in our lives. God created women to be alluring, to invite others into His presence.

Because you are no longer together does not mean you are off the hook. Live well.

She said it much more gently than my dad, but i got the message loud and clear. I am not off the hook.