Dear blackbird,
I assume you remember many of the women and pants threads.
In some ways, this reminds me a lot of them.
A person says that women should dress modestly because the Bible says so. Everybody agrees.
From there,the application often comes that all women at all times should wear dresses.
I agree with you that the marriage relationship is foremost and must be "jealously" guarded.
And your applications of doing that are for you to figure out. It is also appropriate for people to share how, why, and what they do.
But, in my opinion, just like women and pants, the Bible is inspired, not the application.
On this thread, people have said they would not stop in the rain to help a friend with a broken down car. Some would question taking a much older, long-term friend to a celebratory meal.
You would question sitting down by somebody at McDonald's and saying howdy. Some would quit before having a job around females.
Those are personal applications. And you have the right to make those personal applications.
But just like pants, someone else may not have a problem with those or other scenarios. And it does not necessarily mean that they don't "jealously" protect their marriage.
My husband was again at a refinery on Thursday. The site engineer, once again, was a female. Sitting in the commissary, drinking a Coke, and spreading out mechanical drawings, is honestly not something he, I, or anyone there had a problem with. We agree with you on the overarching principle, but we disagree on application.
Just like you agreed you would do SOMETHING to help a friend by the side of the road. Others would differ from both of us in that application.
Karen