 |
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
|
1Th 5:17 Pray without ceasing. My husband and I have been married for almost 33 years. We have never been physically separated…but emotional separation has occurred several times in our marriage. When we married, we each had a lot of emotional baggage to move in to our marriage and that, at times, caused the distancing from each other emotionally. I used to think this was an uncommon occurrence, but after more than twenty years of counseling women I realize that it is not uncommon. When we first married I knew my husband needed to change or this marriage was NOT going to ever work. I prayed, "Oh God change him!" more times than I care to remember. We were baby Christians trying to get our spiritual lives growing, and newlyweds trying to get a marriage growing, and since I became "with child" four months after we were married, we were also trying to get a family growing. It was an exhausting experience! But I was faithful, I kept asking God to change this man that I married -- because I loved him and I wanted us to be happy. I cannot remember what changed my mode of praying for our marriage. I don't know if it was the Holy Spirit personally teaching me or if I heard a 'new concept' of praying for my spouse…but my prayers did change drastically: Praying for God to change my husband became praying for God to change us both and make us more compatible -- unified. And for the last 32 years that is exactly how I have kept praying for my husband to change. Did God hear my prayers? Oh yes! Did God answer my prayers? Oh, all of the time! Did we become more compatible -- unified? Yes we did, and it enabled us, in Christ, to weather some torrential storms in our lives. Did God change my husband -- finally? Yes, He did -- but He changed me far more! In years of listening and counseling I have heard these words put in so many
different ways: "I am praying for God to changed my husband (wife)."
And always when I share my experience with this 'dilemma' in our first years
of marriage it causes a complete silence to come over a conversation. It seems
so simplistic yet what God taught me -- I have come to realize is so profound
and such a beginning answer to any degree of trouble in a marriage.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Site Sponsor: |
About
Our Sponsors View All Of Our Sponsors |
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
[ Join Our Mailing List
] [ Acknowledgements
] [ Our Site's Popular
Pages ] [ Spiritual
Help Available ] [ Contact
Us ] [ ] [ Recommended Sites ] [ Conference Information ] [ Doctrinal Statement ] [ Our Purpose ] [ Privacy Policy ] [ Our Webrings ] Most of the people writing and mentoring on this site are not licensed counselors or trained professionals. Rather, they are (saved) individuals using God's Word to help others. (If someone needs professional assistance we will attempt to match him/her with a professional counselor. Please note, professional counselors may charge fees for their services.) |
|||||
| New Hope Outreach
is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3), not-for-profit organization. All donations to
New Hope Outreach are tax deductible. This site is hosted and maintained by Complete Computer Solutions, Inc Copyright © 2001-2008 New Hope Outreach, Inc All Rights Reserved |
|||||
| Reproduction of content on this site, in any form, is strictly prohibited without written consent of the author(s) | |||||
|
This page has been displayed 7 times this month, 47 times since October 11, 2008 . |
|||||
