Ten Marriage Profiles Built To Last Part 2. We started yesterday with this beautiful topic and I will continue from where we stopped.
Yesterday, my husband wrote on
a. The praying couple
b. The calling couple.
c. The exchanging couple
d. The sharing couple
e. The encouraging couple.
I will write on five more this morning
We need to understand that we (husbands and wives) are building a name and a legacy. What you build and how you build matters.
Ten Marriage Profiles Built To Last Part 2
6. The Building Couples
Since our words, thoughts, and actions are like building materials, what we should ask ourselves is what type of materials am I using to build and what am I building? Apart from building a “good family”. We should also build up ourselves. Is your wife a better person, a better businesswoman? Is your husband a better man, a better leader? Better than when you first met them?
7. The Defending Couples
Couples should defend each other no matter what. Why? Because they are one. Defend yourselves spirit, soul, and body. Defend financially, socially, emotionally. Know that when you defend your spouse, you defend yourself. When you throw your spouse away as rubbish, you find yourself naked when you need a covering.
8. The Growing Couples
There is a beauty that comes when couples grow together till old age. They have held on to each other and grew over the years. They have grown mentally, and emotionally and have matured together. They have grown on wealth, experience, and wisdom. Give allowance for each other to grow.
Ten Marriage Profiles Built To Last Part 2
9. The investing Couples
Little drops of water become a mighty ocean. Little investment of time, love, affection, understanding, right words are investments that yield great dividends later on. Let’s invest in our marriage, our children, and in ourselves.
10. The Laughing Couples
Laughter is so important in building that last. It is what makes us enjoy while we build. It gives us memories that bring about joy. Don’t let us be uptight. Let’s take time to laugh and have fun.
A lot of married couples are often caught up in the hustles and bustles of life and become distracted. Here is a reminder list of what you should do regularly to each other and how to go about it.
Love, commitment, and endurance are interwoven into stories of lasting unity. In this devotional, I delve into types of couples who will have remarkable tales of steadfast devotion, resilience, and shared growth that offer insights into the secrets of enduring relationships. Read on as I uncover the unique blueprints behind these marriages that will not just survive, but thrive, creating an inspiring lasting impact.
Ten Marriage Profiles Built To Last
1. The Praying Couple
Pray for her. Let it be genuine. This helps you to harness the help of God to come to bear for you. Prayers will solve seemingly impossible problems. Rather than give up quickly, pray about it!
2. The Calling Couple
Whether you will see each other later in the day is not the issue, the issue is that communication is the live wire of any relationship or marriage that will survive. Keep in touch. Send SMS. Use chats.
3. The Exchanging couple
It doesn’t have to be expensive! But let it be touching. Notice what I wrote, exchange gifts; not collect gifts! Those little gestures help to keep the fire of your relationship and marriage aflame.
Ten Marriage Profiles Built To Last
4. The Sharing couple
Share with him or her what God is dealing with you in His word.
Whatever God tells you in your devotion or in your personal walk with God, will also bless him or her as long as it blesses you.
5. The Encouraging Couple
You are his number-one fan. You are her number-one fan. Don’t discourage each other. Don’t dissipate your energy on criticism. Be aware that your input goes a long way because you are the closest person.
I will stop here today and continue tomorrow! See you then! Have a great day!
It is understandable when enemies wound you. It is somehow discernible when you have wounds and bandages arising from a battlefront with an opposing side!
But the most significant wounds in our hearts are incidentally sustained by friends and lovers.
We have ex-friends, ex-besties, ex-lovers and sometimes ex-spouses. Sometimes the resulting effect is single motherhood, but how come we don’t hear of single fathers?
This leaves the women folk hurt most of the time because they deal more with hurts, bitterness, and agony of heart arising from disappointments in their quest for love.
Some married couples are not exempt from hurts and bitterness, because marriage can become that place where you are constantly hurt, especially when you want your spouse in a certain way and yet you are not achieving that.
Dealing With Love’s Wounds and Hurts
Zechariah 13:6 (KJV) And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
Wounds can be sustained by friends, lovers, and spouses.
That is the reality!
However, you cannot stay hurt and wounded all your life! You have to learn to forgive and let go!
Do you realize that it is easier for the offender to let go? Of course, God’s justice system will deal with such a person. However, the offended find it challenging to move on as they struggle in the mud and mire of bitterness!
This is why it often looks like you are hurt and yet things have really gone slow and complicated. It’s because of bitterness of heart!
Dealing With Love’s Wounds and Hurts
Proverbs 14:30 (AMPC+) A calm and undisturbed mind and heart are the life and health of the body, but envy, jealousy, and wrath are like rottenness of the bones.
Envy, jealousy, and wrath are the cousins of bitterness. The scriptures say they can cause rottenness in the bones.
It can literally cause sicknesses and diseases!
You don’t want to stay on that page!
The good news is that God heals!
Psalms 147:3 (KJV) He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
That is soothing! He will not only heal your broken heart, He will bind up your wounds!
Why don’t you go to Him this morning? He is waiting to hear and attend to you!
Psalms 147:3 (MSG) He heals the heartbroken and bandages their wounds.
Harmful Voices in Relationships and Marriage. As children of God, God speaks to us like a father will speak to his children. When we listen to His voice, we will not get into problems. When we disregard His voice, we start listening to another voice. The moment we don’t flee or run away from that voice, we get into a serious mess.
God is good God. God speaks to us. The devil is a bad devil. He also attempts to speak to us. That is why the scripture declares:
And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers (John 10:4-5 KJV)
When we make up our minds to listen to God and fill our hearts with His word daily and consistently, we will not listen or take heed to the voice of the evil one. That is why the way Jesus refuted and refused to listen to the voice of the devil during the temptation was to speak out God’s word. Three times he was tempted, three times he said, ‘It is written…’ What if he doesn’t know what is written?
This morning, by the Spirit of God, I want to identify ten areas where we might have been listening to the wrong voice. It comes in subtle ways mostly.
The devil often uses people and situations to speak to us. We must be careful. Here are the people and voices the devil often uses.
Harmful Voices in Relationships and Marriage
1. The user’s voice
I can marry her, but I don’t have to be committed to her
2. The deceiver’s voice
I don’t have to let my spouse know everything, or else the marriage can be jeopardized.
3. The religious voice
Everybody has a lover somewhere, God must accommodate that or we will all go to hell.
4. The foolish voice
As long as I have a prophet somewhere that I consult and pray for me, I can continue with my lifestyle.
5. The sensual voice
I am not sure of my spouse’s commitment. I can as well explore and also live my life.
Harmful Voices in Relationships and Marriage
6. The greedy voice
I can collect money from him to help my spouse. After all, it’s for the family. It’s for us and that can be a secret. If I don’t do it, we will be hungry.
7. The unbelievers’ voice
My family does not need Jesus. I have enough money. It is poor and hungry people that go around praying.
8. The self-righteous voice
I don’t want my family to be fanatical. We don’t have to go to church. The church is full of hypocrites.
9. The carnal voice
I serve God passionately and I give. But God knows that addictions cannot really go like that. I will keep on working on it and one day God might even give me a sign to stop.
10. The confused voice
The only way to keep this man married to me is to allow him to have his way with other ladies out there. As long as he doesn’t bring them home, he can do whatever he wants. Life is give and take, I can’t be policing him around, since he doesn’t disturb me from doing what I am doing.
Well, all the above statements are defective. If you or the person you are engaged with makes these types of statements, you might want to really seek help because they are defective statements indicative and symptomatic of deeper spiritual problems. They are belief systems that are sure to crack and leave you cracked. That will not be your portion in Jesus name.
If you are married, and one or more of the above seems to be the scenario, you will need to pray a lot for God’s help and intervention and then seek counseling as well.
In life, God has laid out His principles and when we deviate from them, things will not work out however we try because the scripture cannot be broken! In any way where you seem lacking, God will forgive, forget, redeem, and restore as necessary when you genuinely repent.
There is a state of heart that makes every spouse stick to each other. It is having an understanding that your relationship is a covenant relationship.
A covenant relationship is based on the principle of ’till death do us part’. A relationship that should only be severed by death. Through thick and thin we stick together.
A lot of couples give up on their marriage and on their spouses too soon. Yes, I am not saying it will be easy and Yes, there are some cases, where it becomes practically impossible to stick together.
As couples, when you get married you are saying, “Your God shall be my God, your people shall be my people”
Ruth understands this covenant relationship.
Every covenant relationship will be tested, just as the relationship between Ruth and Naomi was tested.
The benefit of the covenant of marriage is only enjoyed by those who stick to each other till the end.
For the Singles, you need to ask yourselves can this lady or guy stick with me through the tough times? Can I stick with her for life? Am I that committed to him/ her? Can I cover him/her?
Sticking To Your Spouse
Let’s see Ruth’s understanding of the covenant as recorded in the bible.
Ruth 1:16 KJV And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:
Ruth 1:16 – 17 MSG But Ruth said, “Don’t force me to leave you; don’t make me go home. Where you go, I go; and where you live, I’ll live. Your people are my people, your God is my god; where you die, I’ll die, and that’s where I’ll be buried, so help me God—not even death itself is going to come between us!”
The Covenant of Marriage is not supposed to be endured but enjoyed.
In other to enjoy the marriage covenant there must be agreement.
Can two walk together except they agree? Amos 3:3
Sticking To Your Spouse
This agreement must be well spelled out. It is like the Vision and Mission statement of an organization. Everybody knows why the organization exists and how to reach its goals.
Without an agreement, there is no sticking together, and definitely, no covenant relationship will exist.
All couples should work on their “agreement”. There has to be the involvement of both husband and wife in all matters. There must be mutual consent or assent.
Let’s see the definition of agreement:
An agreement is a manifestation of mutual assent by two or more persons to one another. It is a meeting of the minds with a common intention and is made through offer and acceptance. An agreement can be shown from words, conduct, and in some cases, even silence.
The agreement involves discussion, rubbing together of minds. It requires patience and understanding for both parties to be on the same page.
There can only be speed when there is agreement.
“All parties must agree about an offer made by one party and accepted by the other.
Something of value must be exchanged for something else of value”
Let us all work towards agreement in our relationship and marriage.
May we fulfill God’s mandate for our marriage in Jesus’ mighty name