Monday, June 25, 2007

Pray For Your Beloved ~ Trust in the Lord

Trust and obey
For there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus
But to trust and obey
(John H. Sammis & Daniel B. Towner)

What blessed words, and wonderful truth are within this old hymn! The only way that we can get through this life is by walking in trust and obeying the Word of God.

This week we are going to focus on praying for our husbands to grow in their trust of the Lord. Psalm 9:10 says, “And those who know Your name put their trust in You, for You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.” I pray that my beloved would seek the Lord. That he would know who God is, and trust in Him.

Our husbands are charged with the leading of their families. There are times when the way seems difficult – the direction unclear. Or possibly the way seems to be crystal clear, but contrary to Scripture. It is at those times when our beloved husbands must, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5 This is not easy to do, especially when those around them are encouraging them to take the easy way or to “use the brain God gave them”.

As wives, we need to be in the Word, so that we know how to pray for them and how to encourage them to follow after the Lord. God calls to His children to know and trust Him. May we ever encourage our husbands toward that end.

“Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:3-4

Saturday, June 16, 2007

My Beloved

"The righteous who walks in his integrity ~ blessed are his children after him!" Proverbs 20:7

On this day before Father's Day, I wanted to take time to praise God for the husband He has given me, and the father that He has blessed my children with.

My Beloved was not raised in a Christian home. In fact, he was raised in a home where chaos often reigned. His parents divorced when he was young, and his mother struggled with many issues that made life...difficult. He was loved by his parents, but they did not provide much stability for him. He came to know Christ as his Savior as an adult.

We married when he was 25, and within just a little over a year's time, our first son was born. My darling took to Daddy-hood like a duck to water. He is one of those people that have "the touch" when it comes to babies. They like to be held by him, and he has the ability to calm fussy babies and get tired, cranky babies to sleep.

During the early years of our marriage, he walked a nominal Christian walk. But, God is faithful, and He would not allow that for long. As our family grew, so did my Beloved's faith. He has always been someone who got along with people in general, but as God has led him to work with the public, he has come into his own as a man who walks in integrity. The people in our community know that if they are in need, he will do whatever he can to help them. They know that he is a man who honors his word, and in so doing, honors his Lord.

He is a man who loves his God deeply and desires to follow after Him. He is a tenderhearted Daddy, who adores his children. He truely believes his children are blessings from the Lord. He is a wonderful husband, best friend, and thoughtful lover. I am thankful that God has allowed me to walk through life with this precious man.

When I think about where the Lord has brought him from, the growth that has happened in his life, I am eternally grateful. Only God could bring about such a change, only He could show a man how to Biblically love his wife and children when he never saw that modeled growing up. Thank You, Lord!!

May we all take some time to reflect upon the goodness of the Lord, and His working in our husbands and fathers on this Father's Day.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Looking Back

Well, I was recently asked by our Pastor to give my testimony at church. What a wonderful excercise! Truely it is a blessing to look back over our lives and see what the Lord has done, and where He has brought us.

It was also a very humbling experience. I realized (not that I didn't know before), that there have been times in my marriage where it was only God's mercy that held it together. I was reminded of Proverbs 14:1 "The wisest of women builds her house, but folly with her own hands tears it down." There have been times when because of my own unhappiness, my own discontent heart that I did whatever I could to make sure that my Beloved was miserable. I was "tearing down my house". I praise God that He did not allow me to distroy my marriage.

I have said that my husband is either very forgiving, or oblivious to my worst faults - or maybe a little of both. :-) I am so thankful that the Lord didn't give up on me and that in spite of my best efforts to the contrary, He held my marriage together. I praise Him for continuing to draw me to Himself and for teaching me what it is to be a godly wife. For giving me the desire to be a godly wife. I still have much to do and learn, but I am so much further along the path than I was even a few years ago.

So, today I encourage you to sit down and think over the years, think about what the Lord has done in your life.