Q:  My husband regularly distracts me during prayer or while I’m listening to sermons. He seems to be seeking my attention on purpose, and it is causing me to lose my spiritual focus. How can I explain to him the importance of my time with God?

A.  I am so glad you asked this question, because just this week, I was reading 1 Corinthians 11, and I think it has a great answer for you. 

1 Corinthians 11:7 says, “For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man.”

The first thing I want you to see here is that man is the image of the glory of God! Maybe this isn’t something you want to say to your husband, or maybe it’s something that he needs to hear from you, but whether you say it aloud or not, you need to have an attitude toward him that says, “Sweetheart, you are the image of glory of God.” That’s so important as you deal with your husband.

Now notice that this verse doesn’t say anything about if a man is saved or not saved, if he’s an alcoholic or a drug addict or not. It just says “man” — all men are the image of the glory of God.

Of course, the next part of this verse says, “but woman is the glory of man.” This is also important, because it tells you that you are very important to your husband.  Verses 8 and 9 tell us more about this special place that a wife holds in the marriage relationship: “For man is not from woman, but woman from man. Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man.”

Ladies, there is great wisdom here about our relationships with our husbands. You see, women have an ability to work and operate on their own, without their husbands, but in my observation, men really need their wives. I’ve seen this with my husband — he wants me to be by him. If I’m gone, he wants to know when I’m getting back. He has a need for me.

Friend, that is perfectly normal, so when your husband is seeking your attention, don’t be so quick to resent or judge him. Don’t think to yourself, “Oh, he’s so needy. He can’t do anything without me,” or “He’s just bossing me around and trying to control me.” Instead recognize that there is something in him that causes him to need you. Like we just read, “Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man” (1 Corinthians 11:9).

With this attitude as your foundation, this is how you should handle it when your husband is distracting you from your time with the Lord. First of all, I would encourage you to sit down with him and watch church or read your Bible or pray together. You could also find times to do it when he’s not at home or when he’s sleeping so that you can have that time to yourself.

If it’s a problem that you really need to talk to him about, then just remember that he needs you. Look at his behavior from the perspective that you were made for him and that he needs you. Walk into that conversation with the decision that you are going to show your respect and love to him.

Once you are in that right mental space, then you can talk to him about it. In a calm, non-emotional way, you can gently and lovingly tell him, “Sweetheart, this is my only time to be able to watch this service. Would you allow me to watch this?” Don’t go into an argument or start blaming him or accusing him of not wanting you to watch church. That’s just going to cause conflict, and you want peace in your house, because the Holy Spirit works best where there is peace.