DAILY DEVOTIONS with MICHELE

Familiarity need not breed contempt. Instead, our marriages can be marked by sacrificial love, gentle kindness, tenderhearted affection, and warm intimacy that grow through the years.

Good counsel can be found in those couples who have negotiated this process successfully. They possess the experience and expertise that comes from charting a path through difficult, unknown waters. They have trusted God to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (II Peter 3:18). They have held onto one another to discover the depths and richness of seasoned married love.

Marriage is not always convenient or carefree. When Christ remains at the center of this sacred union, He steadies and secures us through the rough patches. When we are committed to God and the vows we made before Him, the same confidence of our first “I do” will carry us steadfastly through the years.

God has given us the ability to choose. Like Joshua of old, we must declare: “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). We must recognize the differences between male and female. We must appreciate the strengths that the husband and the wife bring to the marriage relationship. We must acknowledge the fact that God will use a devout spouse to speak His truth and His will to us. Together, we must stand united in the power of His might.

God caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep and took a rib from his side to create the woman (Genesis 2:21-22). He did not take from Adam’s head so that Eve would rule over him. He did not take from Adam’s foot so that he would walk over her. He took her from Adam’s side so that they would walk side by side to complement and complete one another.

God designed us with significant differences that complement and complete one another. However, when sin and selfishness entered the relationship, Satan contorted these differences to become a source of contention and competition.

Better than a contractor, we have an Advocate Who works alongside us! Jesus lives to make intercession for us. When we boldly approach the throne of grace, He promises to hear and work on our behalf.

Paul encourages us to concentrate on harmony in our relationships, on ways to build up others and promote their spiritual growth (Romans 14:19). He urges us to not say or do things that would interfere with the free exchange of love. Put an end to selfishness, and consider another person’s feelings and preferences.

Jesus said, “Love each other as I have loved you.”  (John 15:12).  We can’t do it within ourselves, because as soon as we try to love the unlovable people He brings across our pathway, we blow it again and again.