One of our granddaughters is going to basketball camp this summer. She came home exhausted and sweaty after working all day with coaches to improve her skills. When she came home, her younger sister was curled up reading a book. She looked at her big sister and remarked, "That's why I do not like sports."
Sounds just like standers to me. Stander A is doing spiritual battle for their family every day, engaged in combat for the very soul of a prodigal spouse. All the time that person is working this summer to become more like Jesus, with their eyes focused on the prize of a spouse back at home and with a changed heart.
When an individual takes a stand for marriage restoration they are placing a bull's eye on their life for Satan. There have spiritual skirmishes every day, but Jesus helps the stander to win every one. We all know who will eventually win the war.
While Stander A fights, Stander B decided to avoid the fight and to "Get on with life," as everyone suggests. That person unknowingly surrenders their family to the enemy. They may even wear the title of stander, but what they mean is, "I will sit back and watch what happens, but I am putting no more effort into this thing."
Stander A is an active stander and Stander B is a passive stander. God brings spouses home for good to standers who are striving to be more like Jesus each and every day.
This summer is not a time to wait and see what happens to your family. It is a time to get serious about standing for marriage restoration God's way; a time to be like our granddaughter and to use every available help to sharpen your standing skills, as well as to sharpen your skills in living for Jesus. People like that often discover the spouse attempting to find the way home, and those standers are prepared!
