12 Mar, 2008
How about love for a lifetime?
Happy Anniversary Linda!
One nice thing about writing this DAILYBIDE devotional blog is that I can tell the world how much I love my beautiful bride as we celebrate our 31st wedding anniversary today!
I can honestly say that I would marry Linda again in a heartbeat, but I would never want to go back in time. Why? We're more in love now than ever!
How? It's all about God's grace to us and our putting Christ at the center of our relationship.
Love for a lifetime doesn't just sort of happen....that's why I am so grateful to God as I celebrate with my bride today!
picture courtesy images.google.com
Ephesians 5:21-33
21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Wives and Husbands
22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.
25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. (ESV)
What does today's scripture teach us about how to experience love for a lifetime?
Once again, today's passage illustrates just how practical God's Word is for all of life. Here's what Tyndale's LIFE APPLICATION STUDY BIBLE notes say about part of Paul's teaching on marriage:
5:31-33 The union of husband and wife merges two persons in such a way that little can affect one without also affecting the other. Oneness in marriage does not mean losing your personality in the personality of the other. Instead, it means caring for your spouse as you care for yourself, learning to anticipate his or her needs, helping the other person become all he or she can be. The creation story tells of God's plan that husband and wife should be one (Genesis 2:24), and Jesus also referred to this plan (Matthew 19:4-6).
Even though most of you will describe me as old, don't miss this - viewing and doing marriage according to God's Word is not old-fashioned or just for old people. It's God's perfect way for a man and woman to enjoy a loving marriage for a lifetime!
How can you connect today's God's Story scripture to your life?
- Praise God for having the best plan for all of life! Thank Him for giving us practical instructions on marriage in His Word. If you're a teenager, ask His Spirit to help you remember today's truths from His Word as you date. If you're young and single, ask His Spirit to help you use today's scripture as a grid as you consider the possibility of marriage with someone.
- Read today's passage of scripture again to make sure you understand God's design for marriage.
- Though you may be too young to get married, you're not too young to think about marriage. You can begin to apply today's God's Story on marriage in your relationships right now. How? By practicing reverence for Christ, respect and honor for the opposite sex, and treating others the way Jesus would...
- Write down three practical ways that you will personally apply this passage and keep this list where you can review it regularly.
How can you connect today's story, God's Story and your story to others?
- If you're a teenager or a young single person, sit down with several friends and discuss this passage and make a commitment to encourage each other and hold each other accountable to view marriage God's way.
- Pray for people you know who are struggling in their marriages.
- Music, movies, TV and celebrity news are full of stories of people who are not practicing Christ-centered relationships and marriages. Ask your friends who need Jesus about their views on marriage. Trust Jesus to give you the heart and words to talk about God's Story on marriage and how you plan on it being the guide for your story if you ever get married.
- May 2008 [9]
- April 2008 [22]
- March 2008 [21]
- February 2008 [19]
- January 2008 [21]
- December 2007 [20]
- November 2007 [18]
- October 2007 [20]
- September 2007 [19]
- August 2007 [20]
- July 2007 [18]
- June 2007 [19]
- May 2007 [18]
- April 2007 [13]
- March 2007 [17]
- February 2007 [14]
- January 2007 [9]
- December 2006 [6]
- November 2006 [15]
- October 2006 [18]
- September 2006 [12]
- August 2006 [17]
- July 2006 [14]
- June 2006 [4]
