A Special Word To Husbands And Wives

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL TUESDAY APRIL 1, 2003
(Ephesians 5:22-33)

You wives must submit to your husbands' leadership in the same way you submit to the Lord. For a husband is in charge of his wife in the same way Christ is in charge of his body the church. (He gave his very life to take care of it and be its Savior!) So you wives must willingly obey your husbands in everything, just as the church obeys Christ.

And you husbands, show the same kind of love to your wives as Christ showed to the church when he died for her, to make her holy and clean, washed by baptism and God's Word; so that he could give her to himself as a glorious church without a single spot or wrinkle or any other blemish, being holy and without a single fault. That is how husbands should treat their wives, loving them as parts of themselves. For since a man and his wife are now one, a man is really doing himself a favor and loving himself when he loves his wife! No one hates his own body but lovingly cares for it, just as Christ cares for his body the church, of which we are parts.

(That the husband and wife are one body is proved by the Scripture which says, "A man must leave his father and mother when he marries, so that he can be perfectly joined to his wife, and the two shall be one.") I know this is hard to understand, but it is an illustration of the way we are parts of the body of Christ.

So again I say, a man must love his wife as a part of himself; and the wife must see to it that she deeply respects her husband—obeying, praising and honoring him.

A special Word to husbands and wives. If you are married, you BETTER read this. Every word! If you are not married, you STILL better read it because one day you most likely will be.

I have a question for you men. When was the last time that you told your wife how beautiful she looked? When was the last time that you told your wife that she was the most special person in the world? If your answer is anything but TODAY, you better stop whatever you are doing and tell her... right now! Do you remember when you were dating, and how you couldn't wait to be with her? Do you remember how NOTHING in the world mattered but her? Do you remember that you would do ANYTHING for her? Do you still feel that way?

If the answer is no, you need to get on your knees and pray for God to restore those feelings. Just because you are now married, you should feel the same way and even MORE. After all, this is the woman that God gave you to share your life with! She isn't like that putter you used to like, but now is somewhere in the garage... forgotten. You made a vow before your wife and before God to love her, and to care for her, and to nurture her, until death do you part. How can you take the most special person in your life, the one that God gave you, for granted?

Let me give you some advice. You better get on the phone and send your wife some flowers. Why? For no other reason but to let her know that you love her and care about her. You better quit ignoring her and her needs. You better start taking the same amount of time with your wife that you do with the other things that occupy your time. Women need to be reminded that they are beautiful. They need to be reminded that you care for them.

While saying it is necessary, you better prove it with your actions. You are so wrapped up in your career, in your life, in the things that you are interested in, you are neglecting your wife. You better start making TIME for your wife. Make the effort to spend TIME with her, and TALK to her.

Ok women, it is your turn. When was the last time that you told your husband how handsome he was? When was the last time you told your husband that he was the most special person in the world? If your answer is anything but TODAY, you better stop whatever you are doing and tell him... right now! Do you remember when you were dating, how you couldn't wait to be with him? Do you remember how NOTHING in the world mattered but him? Do you remember that you would do ANYTHING for him? Do you still feel that way?

If the answer is no, you need to get on your knees and pray for God to restore those feelings. Just because you are now married, you should feel the same way and even MORE. After all, this is the man that God gave you to share your life with! He isn't like that food processor you used to like, but now is stored away in the cabinet... forgotten. You made a vow before your husband and before God to love him, and to care for him, and to nurture him until death do you part. How can you take the most special person in your life, the one that God gave you, for granted?

Let me give you some advice. You better stop by the mall and buy your husband a special gift. Why? For no other reason but to let him know that you love him and care about him. You better quit ignoring him and his needs. You better start taking the same amount of time with your husband that you do with the others things that occupy your time. Men need to be reminded that they are appreciated. They need to be reminded that you care for them.

While saying it is necessary, you better prove it with your actions. You are so wrapped up in your job, in the home, in the kids, in the things that you are interested in, you are neglecting your husband. You better start making TIME for your husband. Make the effort to spend TIME with him, and TALK to him.

I love you and care about you so much. Satan has done such a masterful job of destroying the beauty and perfection of God's institution of marriage. He does it in so many deceitful ways. I get thousands and thousands of emails daily from husbands and wives whose marriages are in trouble. It breaks my heart. I personally counsel couples all of the time in this area. Making two lives become one is probably one of the most difficult things there is in life. It is always magical at first, but maintaining that magic is not easy. Making it last over time is the goal.

That ONLY happens when Christ is the head of each one of your lives individually, and the center of your marriage. The greatest relationship that you will have in this life is with the Lord. After that, it is with your spouse. Just like you must take time to develop that close, intimate walk with Christ, you must also take the time and put forth the effort in your relationship with your spouse.

I will be praying for all of you today that are married. There are two key elements in a successful marriage. TIME AND TALK. You MUST take time to be together each day, and you MUST talk to each other. Never forget, God gave you this special person for the rest of your life. Take every second that you can to be with that person. Life is short enough, and when it is over, it is over. Don't waste one second that you can be together. Talk to each other. Communication is critical.

Libraries are full of books on this issue, so let me close today with this simple word of encouragement. Take time today to make your husband or wife feel special. Let them know how much you care for them, and are thankful for them. MAKE THE TIME. Men, you better make sure every day that your wife knows how much you love her. Women, you better make sure every day that your husband knows that he is the most important person in the world to you. DON'T TAKE EACH OTHER FOR GRANTED! If you love each other as God calls you to in today's passage of Scripture, your relationship with your spouse can be the most incredible thing in your life outside of your relationship with the Lord.

In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at bkeller@liveprayer.com.

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