“Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” – Ecclesiastes 4:12

In a society that bombards us with ideas that relationships are just meant to be fun, that love is just a feeling that you can fall into or fall out of, or to just let things go with the flow & if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work…guarding your heart & your marriage through prayer & strength in the Lord is more important than ever.

I will be honest with you, this is a very new realization for me. David & I have been married a little over 5 & 1/2 years. I have prayed for him & for our marriage during that time, but it’s never really been with a sense of urgency or a part of daily, deep communication with God. It’s just been recently that I’ve felt this urgent desire to pray for my husband & pray for our marriage. And even more honestly, prayer is something that, as I’ve said before, has made me feel awkward & uncomfortable, so a lot of times I’ve just avoided it, put it off, or made excuses as to why I didn’t. When I started feeling this urge to pray, though, I really had very little clue as to where or how to start praying for David & our marriage, but God’s cool…He led me right to a resource that I desperately needed for myself, for David, & for our marriage.

Right at the end of December David & I went out to Barnes & Noble. In that trip, I “just happened” (HA! Yeah right!)  to stumble across the book, The Power of a Praying Wife. Now, I am a very slow reader…but I am reading this book slower than usual. It is a lot to take in & there’s a lot to absorb & swallow.

I think the hardest pill to swallow right at the beginning was the matter of praying not for God to change my husband, but for God to first change ME. That’s scary & hard…& it can feel overwhelming, but the more I read the more I want to follow through with the advice & the more I want God to mold & shape me.

As I began to read, it actually started to break my heart. In the 5.5 years we have been married I have missed SO many opportunities to take things to the Lord in prayer. I have nagged when I should have prayed. I have discouraged & torn down when I should have fallen down on my knees to the Lord in earnest prayer. I have unleashed anger instead of giving love & comfort. I am excited to see how God will change me & grow our relationship & marriage, but I also wish I had been closer in-tune with God’s Spirit & guidance earlier in our marriage for the simple fact that we could have avoided many hardships & disputes through His way instead of our own.

So, take the time today to stop & pray for your husband. It doesn’t matter whether you’re single, dating, engaged, newlyweds, been married for 5 years or 50. It doesn’t even matter if your husband is a Christian or not. Stop & pray that God will soften your heart, that He will change & guide you, that He will show you how you can help & pray for your husband. Don’t pray that God will change your husband the way YOU want him changed, but pray that he will be changed the way GOD wants him to be changed. Take the time today to cover your marriage in a veil of prayer. Don’t just make a passing 2-second prayer…take time, deep, disciplined, heartfelt time in God’s presence to guard your marriage. The thing you have (or even are waiting for) is something Satan
wants to tear down & destroy because it is something that represents a structure that the Lord has created. Satan can tear apart a marriage for the sake of hurting & destroying relationships & faith. He can use it as a way to plant seeds of bitterness, anger, & unforgiveness that can last a lifetime…or you can give your marriage, your husband, & your family over to the Lord for Him to protect…and the Lord can use it for good, blessing others, & a way to glorify Him & share His gospel across the world.

Your marriage isn’t just some passing thing. Your wedding day wasn’t the end-all-be-all of life…it was the beginning of the battle. It is your choice as to whether you will daily enter that battle prepared & cloaked in the armor of the Spirit, or if you’ll enter it wearing nothing but a white dress & selfish expectations. The choice is yours. Don’t wait to pray for your husband & your marriage, start now.

Which will you be?

Be blessed.

PS- Here’s some encouraging scripture to lift you up in your marriage.