“He’s my hero, I will stand by him. He’s my precious love, I will stand by him. God give him many more years, this love will last forever.”
With the above expression, we are reminded of a 2017 song done in video by Reverend (Dr.) Lizzy Johnson Suleman in support of her husband, Apostle (Prof.) Johnson Suleman, in the midst of a challenging episode that soon crumbled like what it really was; a badly arranged cards.
It was the 16th wedding anniversary on Thursday, June 4, 2020, of this beautiful couple who have remained best friends, winning together, through their 22 years romantic journey, with praises and affectionate words for each other.
Apostle Johnson and Reverend Lizzy Suleman’s union, indeed, is a classic example of how religious leaders can help married couples stay married. As Christians, they are not only bringing their congregation living truths about the realities of marriage straight from Holy Scripture, they have also constantly endeavour to be a model for an honest and healthy marriage before their audience.
“Despite that I’m also a preacher; a Reverend, I have always been a helper to my husband. My roles as a wife, mother at home, and leader in the church have been constant without let or hindrance,” Reverend Lizzy said this in a press interview, while she counseled that the role of a wife to husband, especially wives of pastors is, knowing, what God expects of them which will make their role as wives and helpmates to their husbands most challenging and fulfilling.
Confirming the wife’s narrative, Suleman said that their marriage has endured this far because “God has made each of us unique individuals.” Eve was created to be the helpmate to Adam, he said in one of his lectures about how a marriage can last a lifetime, pontificating that every marriage, every family, and every clergy family is unique in itself.
“She is my helpmate and she has shown great loyalty and character, which, of course, is vital to the success of any marriage,” Apostle Suleman asserts, while he warned that “beauty doesn’t keep a partner, character does.”
While confirming the nature of the man she first came in contact with in 1999, Reverend Lizzy, who admits she daily prays for the hedge of protection to be around her husband and family, said he is a man that represents simplicity. He redefines modesty, she added.
“He is my Papa and life coach. And by prophetic standard, my husband is an apotheosis of prophetic reverence and veneration. When I met him for the first time, I was swept off my feet by the simple manner he addressed serious issues. So, I came to respect and love him almost immediately,” Reverend Lizzy declares, adding that though, the value of men and the value of women are perfectly equal in the eyes of God, it does not negate the need for a woman to submit to her man’s leadership in the home.
“Jesus Christ submits to the authority of the Father. The Bible teaches us in 1 Corinthians 11:3, that “The head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.” It is a lesson for all women to be in subjection to men, especially pastors’ wives, for their husbands’ God-given authority and leadership,” Reverend Suleman imparts what she considers the tonic for a lasting, affectionate married life.