**Photo of one of our Bibles and our wedding rings ~ by Camille**
When we were just on the verge of getting married, we were given the best marriage advice ever! I can't remember who it was that said it, but we have proven the truth of it over and over and over again. We have been blessed with nearly 19 years of marriage in which we have used this tried and true advice and have found that it works, by God's grace...every time!
What is this advice, you might ask?
If you are a Christian this will make perfect sense to you...for I am speaking of something that involves looking outside of ourselves to the one true God of Heaven and Earth...our Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ. If ever you argue or disagree with your spouse and cannot see eye to eye on a matter, it is then that you must do what follows.
Get on your knees together to pray. Pray out loud. Confess your sin...not his or hers! Easy to say, but very hard to do! You both must do this. Very often, before you are even finished praying, the Lord will mend the rift and you will be reconciled.
This, by the way, is THE MOST difficult thing to do! Be sure to have this strategy in place before it is needed. Commit yourselves to it and implement it as necessary.
A strong marriage has been depicted as one where the husband and wife are both growing closer to the Lord together...like the two lower points of a triangle...and the upper point represents God. The closer they get to God, the closer they get to one another. Interesting analogy, isn't it?
BTW...if your spouse is not a Christian and you are...DON'T despair! You can still commit your way to the Lord in prayer and seek by God's grace to live in harmony with your spouse.
God's Word says..."Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear."
I Peter 3:1-2
See also I Corinthians 7:10-16
Many Blessings,
Camille
**Repost from the archives under the title "The Best Marriage Advice"
16 comments:
Such a good, but challenging reminder. May we be brave enough, vulnerable enough, invested enough to heed it. <><
I love this sooo much!
Welcome Amy Danielle ~ You are so right...we must be brave and humble and look to the LORD for the ability to do this at all! Oh...it has been SO difficult at times!! :)
Heather ~ You are a precious encouragement to me! :)
Blessings,
Camille
What valuable advise, Camille! And your photo is beautiful!
Blessings!
Thank you Raeann! Oh how blessed we were to be given this advice BEFORE our wedding day...God is so gracious to us, isn't HE?
Blessings to you my friend!
In His Love,
Camille
That *is* tough advice, but very worthwhile. Thanks for sharing it.
What beautiful words of encouragement. There is ONE who loves us, hears our every cry and can mend us up perfectly :-)
Love it~ Cinnamon
Welcome Kathleen ~ Oh yes...very difficult, but VERY worthwhile! God is faithful and what a blessing that HE is with us each step of the way. :)
Cinnamon ~ How beautiful it is to belong to HIM! Thanks for your sweet words tonight. :)
Blessings,
Camille
This was great advise! My daddy was a minister and his motto was 'a family that prayed together ~ stayed together'...I have never forgotten that. There is nothing more healing - body, mind and spirit - than to be able to pray with your spouse - about anything!
Though I have been divorced for 13 years now, I always longed for my spouse to even consider praying together. To this day - and he has been remarried for 8 years now - he does not profess to be a christian. Yet, he lives his life as if he is one. We were considered a christian 'family'. sadly, he did not actively enter into 'family' let along christianity.
God has assured me that I will know when the Holy Spirit has changed my former husban's heart. He will make it known to me. Isn't that just like God?
Since Jesus is my Husband now, it is natural for me to pray with my spouse. I wouldn't think of not going to Him and sitting or kneeling at my altar before Him and speaking my sin against Him.
If husbands understood their position in the home...and loved their wives as Christ loved the church... it would be a natural outflow of the relationship ~ to come together in prayer and thanksgiving.
I love your heart here. God bless you and your family! What a wise piece of wisdom you were given BEFORE you entered into covenant together. My Psy prof in college always said that we should have a strategy BEFORE the tragedy... You made this point as well....God's plans are perfect and He always has a plan.
I found your place through Truthsharer...I have joined you.... in this journey with JESUS. What a blesssing your voice is...to the nations!
Be at peace and keep growing closer to JESUS and to each other.
Patrina <")>><
His watchman on the wall
Welcome Patrina ~ It is wonderful to hear your heart as you comment here. I am sorry that you have been through the pain of divorce, but you are right to look to the LORD for everything. We all must do that...even when we are married...only God can fill all our deepest needs. How precious that your testimony is just that...the LORD is your all in all. May HE give you day by day HIS grace to live according to HIS perfect Word!
Blessings,
Camille
You came over to my blog today because God didn't want me to forget to thank you and to bless you for taking the time to write this wonderful post on marriage. The picture you used - you have no idea - how God spoke to me through it.
You see last year I photographed the same candle holder with a burgundy candle in it. I've had that candle for more than 30 years - mine is brass and has been in my family forever. It sits
above the sink in my kitchen right now - because it has many special things gathered around it on the tray part - things that are signs of God's promises to me.
I was so busy catching my breath when I saw it - that I printed out your post and then began searching for the photographs I had taken of it last year and then I took more of it today. I wrote Patrina a note and sent her over to your sight to read this becasue she knows all the promises that God has ahead for me.
I commend you for praying together. Before my husband went to heaven - after 34 years of marriage - we began praying together in the last 124 days of his life - and that's when God did all the mighty miracles that He did at that time. We sent Hospice packing because God was healing - physically for 40 days and then the rest of the time He healed spiritually in every corner to prepare Bob for his entrance into glory.
If I could say one thing that holds a Christ centered marriage together - it is TO PRAY TOGETHER - using the Word.
Just as I was gasping for breath over your post I reached into a draw to find something I was looking for and out dropped a paper. I picked it up - it was a magazine ad that I was saving but I read the OTHER SIDE first.... just these words were writting in bold letters:
"Come up for air!"
That was God speaking to me again because He continued to show me more about your post and that picture of the candle [light].
I can still hardly share it all - but thank you - and bless you! And of course your music was playing then and now as God moved!!
Choosing GREAT JOY, Stephanie
Stephanie ~ You are so right...we all need prayer and the WORD of God...how blessed we are to have HIM throughout all HE has called us to. What a beautiful testimony of God's work in the life of your husband before he passed into the presence of our Saviour in Glory! How precious that you have those memories of your last days together as husband and wife. Thank you for coming back and sharing your story here. May the LORD lead us all in TRUTH for HIS glory each and every day.
Blessings,
Camille
Psalm 1
I wish I could say my husband and I were given that advice. On the contrary we were given none other than his father telling him to always tell me, "yes dear." Those words drove me batty. We have only been in the Word for a short period of time considering we are coming up on our 10 yr wedding anniversary. I wish I could say that he and I pray together everynight but we don't. In all honesty, neither one of us knows what to say or where to start. We're good at praying throughout the day with the girls but when it comes to night time and just he and I, we read our Bible, talk and go to bed. :/ Any advice on how to get started?
Kristy @
http://happyhomemakingwithkristy.blogspot.com/
and http://raisinggodlydaughters-kristy.blogspot.com/
Dear Kristy ~ I am so encouraged that you want to go forward with your husband and the LORD on this! I would refer you to my latest marriage post for the "how to get started" question you had...published on June 2nd. Here is the link ~
http://flowersinhisgarden.blogspot.com/2010/06/called-to-submission.html
Blessings,
Camille
Thank you so much for the link! I have saved your email in my inbox and will be reading it soon <3 I appreciate it! *hugs*
Dear Kristy ~ May the LORD use all these things to draw both you and your husband closer to Himself and each other! :)
Blessings,
Camille
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