A Prayer for Restoration

I'll admit it. I want a better marriage. What woman doesn't?

How easy it is for us, when things go wrong, to pray for God to "fix" our men. That He will help them to see the error of their ways. That He would restore our marriage and change them.

While changing the male heart in a marriage may be a part of the over-all equation, I submit that, for the believing wife who desires a better relationship with her beloved, change should first take place within her own heart.

That's a hard truth to swallow for me. But when I really examine what the Word says about how women should live with their husbands, I can't deny the truth. It's my responsibility as a wife to stay with my husband, to love him, and respect him, whether or not I feel he deserves it. If there are problems, I need to take them to God and ask Him to intervene.

But the change I seek begins with me. After all, the Bible says to first remove the plank from your own eye before trying to remove the speck from your brother's eye. (Matthew 7:5). When my thoughts become skewed with selfishness and pride, I have to take a few steps back and go to the Word for a reminder of how God wants things done.

That's where I am right now...tossing aside my pride and ready to say yes to whatever my Savior leads me to do.

I'm praying this prayer for restoration in my marriage:

Father, thank you for my husband; for his hard work in providing for our family; for the love he has for me; for the special bond that we have; for his long-suffering throughout the years of trials we've experienced; for all the goodness he brings to my life. I lift up our marriage to you for restoration to what you intended it to be.

I pray that you will change me. I relinquish to you my pride and unforgiveness, and ask that you cleanse me of all unrighteousness. Search me, O' Lord, and know my heart; try me and know my anxieties. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Forgive me, Father, for the times when I've allowed pride to hinder my submission, honor, and love to my husband.

You love him more than I do, and I pray that, by the power of your Holy Spirit, you will help me to love him as you do. Help me to see him through your eyes. Help me to honor him and submit to him in everything, as the head of our household, just as your church submits to you. Please give me right words and actions so that in places where he needs to grow, he may be won over by my respectful and pure behavior. Infuse me, Lord, with good character and a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great value in your sight. Help me to be dignified, not slanderous; sober-minded and faithful in all things. Make me into a trustworthy wife so that his heart can trust me in all things. Whenever I open my mouth to speak to him, help me to speak with wisdom and kindness. Help me to do him good and not harm for all the days of my life. Search my heart, Lord, and purge it of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, and every form of malice. Help me to be kind and compassionate to him, forgiving him, just as in Christ you have forgiven me.

Bring us into alignment with your will for our family. Help us to operate as one mind and feeling, united by your Spirit, loving as brothers, being compassionate and humble-minded in dealing with one another. Let us bless and not curse one another. Soften our hearts toward one another. Let us build one another up, not tear each other down. Help us not to repay insult for insult, but rather, with blessing. For it is this that we have been called.

I ask this in Jesus' Holy Name. Amen.


Blessings,

There is Hope

I've been reading some articles this morning about the shooting in Connecticut and why God would allow something so horrific to happen to innocent lives. In reading the comments to one article in particular, I'm seeing how lost some folks are. Unbelievers are quick to blame God and insult those of us who do. As if our peace of mind and heart is a threat to their opinions. And others say "if there was a god, why would he allow this to happen?"

I'm wondering if all these people who don't believe there is a God suddenly do, and now they're blaming the tragedy in Connecticut on Him in efforts to prove their own ideas of Him. Fact is, for whatever reason, He did allow this to happen. However, in my estimation, it goes beyond taking Him (prayer) out of schools, as I've heard some say, although I believe that does play a part. It was truly horrific what happened to these children and their teachers and their families. I can't imagine the pain those families are feeling. This is a very clear picture of the evil that lies within the heart of man. I can rest assured, though, that those babies are in Heaven with their Creator for eternity, where there are no more tears, no more pain. They are home and they are safe. (That's not to be inferred that I'm by any means glad about the shooting; it's merely a reflection of the confidence and trust that I have in God and His divine will)

Meanwhile, we have a society left behind that is still evil and self-seeking. What now will become of the families and all those left behind who make the conscious and so-called "educated" decision to reject our Messiah? Do they have any hope of ever seeing their loved one again? As long as they reject Him, I believe they don't. I'm praying that hearts will be turned to God through this terrible tragedy.

God sent Jesus to experience the pain that we all experience, yet he was completely innocent the day he was crucified - to atone for your sins and mine. God allowed that to happen, too. God sacrificed His son for the sake of all of us, that we would believe in Him and therefore, have eternal life. Death is but a detour for believers. It is not the end. But for those who don't believe, death is the beginning of anguish unlike anything we can fathom with our feeble minds. It means eternal separation from God and from those we love on Earth who chose to trust Him. I have the hope of seeing my loved ones who have died again one day. That's the peace I have in trusting God.

Just as a judge in a civil court sends murderers and thieves to prison, likewise, the Judge of the Universe will sentence us according to the choices we make in life. That judgment hinges essentially on whether we reject or accept Jesus as the Messiah. All this to say, in my own opinion, if God is willing to sacrifice His own son for the sake of all, then I fully believe He will allow other tragedies to occur. Perhaps to get our attention. I don't know why. One day, we'll know all the whys. Right now, we should just trust Him. That in this tragedy, there is hope. They are gone from this life, but with Him, they will live in exceeding joy with Him for eternity. We will be with them one day, if we choose to believe.

Like it or not, our country was founded upon Christian principals. Faith in God was essential to the success and prosperity of our nation. Our government in recent years has begun efforts to "fundamentally transform" those principals into what they feel will be better than the ideals of our founding fathers. In that process, our God, the God of Israel, and any reference to God has been systematically either removed or threatened. It's no surprise to me, however, because Scripture says that kind of thing would happen. The problem is, we've allowed that to happen to the point where society doesn't see the need for Him anymore and it shows in everything we do. Jesus is the light of the world. Without Him, there is darkness - and that's what we're living in now - darkness. We've embraced nearly everything His Word explicitly tells us not to because we think we know better.

If you really want to know the truth, I recommend picking up a Bible and reading it for yourself rather than taking someone else's word for it. Find out for yourself about all the prophecies contained in the scriptures that have come true. It isn't a fairy tale. It's the Truth. It's your prerogative to deny yourself the Truth and just accept what others tell you. But is all that really worth it? Are you willing to bet your life - and death - on what you've heard or what you currently believe without actually reading the Scriptures? I hope that anyone here who isn't a believer will earnestly seek the Truth for yourself. Don't take my word for it, or anyone else's. It's there for you to find out for yourself. I pray you do.

Blessings,