Wow, what a week. Looking back I feel like such a moron! Ever have one of those weeks? Let me fill you in on what happened and how I let my doubts and fears get in the way of seeing how God fulfilled one of His promises in my life.
It all began about a month ago. Being pregnant and carrying around a 27+ pound 1 year old plus already having back issues was not good news for my back. I was in a lot of pain and I was putting off going to see my chiropractor because I saw no way possible that we could even afford one visit, let alone weeks and months of the therapy I knew I needed. Finally, I could not take the pain any longer and knew something had to be done, so, I called up my chiropractor and got my first appointment scheduled. I was honest with the receptionist, who is also a friend of mine, and told her that I truly had no idea how I was going to pay for my treatment and for them to just be patient with us. She said it was not a problem and to just pay what we could when we could.
After going for a little over a month and finally getting some relief I still had not been able to pay anything towards my ever increasing bill. I was praying and asking God to supply the need that we had. I knew he could, but I struggled with truly believing he would. Well, once again, God showed me how true His promises are...
About a week ago I got a phone call from a dear, sweet friend of mine who lives in Colorado. She called to let me know that she was sending me a package. She said there was a couple things in it for Aaron (my 1 year old) and a little money for me to put towards my chiropractor bill! I don't remember if I had shared with her about the need that I had or not, but either way, I knew that God was answering my prayer! She did not tell me how much she was sending. So, I was looking forward to the sweet gift from my friend, and continually praying that God would provide for my need. On Monday night, I had planned to go out for a much needed "Mom's night" with a friend of mine. On my way out the door there was the package! So, I grabbed it and took it with me to open in the car on the way to dinner. Now, your probably thinking...you went out to dinner when you had a financial need?? Yes! And if you know me, you will also know that I had coupons for everything! One for me, and one for my friend! Yup! I don't pay full price for ANYTHING if I don't have to.
So, we get in the car, and I share the story with my friend about the package. So, we open it and inside is much more money than I could have imagined! It was not easy trying to hold back the tears of gratitude! I immediately thanked God for His blessing and how he used my friend in Colorado! I still did not know what the total of my bill was for the chiropractor, so I continued to pray that week till my appointment on Thursday.
Ok, now lets back up one day to Sunday (before our Mom's night out), our Pastor passed around Faith Promise cards at church. Drew was not yet home from his trip to Israel (he got back Tuesday) and so I took a card and silently prayed that God would give me an amount to give this next year that was more than what we gave this past year. If you are not familiar with Faith Promise...it is simply missions giving that is in addition to your tithe/offering. So, he pretty much immediately put an amount in my head and I knew I needed to talk to Drew about it. It was a true step of faith amount just like our current amount is. Last year, we did not have the extra for missions, but we knew that God wanted us to give. So we decided on an amount and trusted that God would provide for us to give that amount to missions every week. Guess what! He did!! For one whole year we had that extra money that we had prayed for and trusted God for every week! And I will be honest, as I was praying in church Sunday, I had the typical thoughts flowing through my head...what about this area where we are short? Or that area? How are we going to pay for this AND that? Yeah, we have all been there. But I knew the number that God had placed on my heart to increase our missions giving too...and so on I waited till Drew got home to talk to him about it.
So, to recap...Saturday, I got the phone call with the blessing of a gift from my friend. On Sunday, the Lord gave me a number that we should increase our missions giving too knowing that we don't actually have the money to do that...but knowing we would have to trust Him to provide it. Monday, I receive the gift from my friend for much more than I could have imagined!
On Tuesday, Drew came home from his trip and it was back to normal life (well, as normal as it could possibly be). Within the last several months, Drew and I have been discussing our financial situation in relation to our needs and especially the upcoming birth of our second child in March. Honestly, to look at our finances, we don't know how we get by...we just do. And for that reason it is a topic of conversation that isn't exactly our favorite and an area that I tend to stress/worry way too much over. Well, on Wednesday, I had our financial situation on my mind a lot. I was allowing it to really get me down. I knew where we should be financially to be able to get by without a problem and I knew where we were and I was allowing that gap to put me in a gloomy mood on Wednesday.
Well, after church on Wednesday night Drew and I were walking to our car when I remembered sharing with him what God had impressed on my heart about missions giving on Sunday. So, I shared the amount that I felt God would have us increase our giving to. At that, he shared with me that he had received a $1 raise at work. Instantly, my mind went back to that gloomy state that I had been in all day worrying about our finances. So, what was my response?? "That's it? Just $1? Ugh!" And the conversation ended.
On Thursday, I went to my chiropractor, and asked what my bill was when they included that days visit. What a blessing!! The amount that my friend had sent me was ABOVE what my total bill was including Thursday's visit! God had provided over and above what I needed for my chiropractor bill! I was able to pay my bill IN FULL with some money left over to cover my visits for the next couple of weeks! God had answered my prayer over and above!! And he had used a dear friend!! I was rejoicing! Well, I went home and shared the news with Drew who was also excited too! And instantly, I was rebuked by the Holy Spirit for my attitude towards the news of Drew's raise the night before. I knew I needed to apologize for my stinky attitude and to rejoice in the fact that he did receive a raise and God was again trying to show me how he was providing for our needs.
Well, it was Friday night and I still had not apologized to Drew (I knew I needed to). We had gotten home from helping at our church's weekly addictions program and I came to Drew and apologized for my wrong response regarding his raise. I was in tears because I knew I had not encouraged my husband and lifted him up when I most needed to. He then shared with me something that I could not see because I had allowed my stinky attitude to get in the way. On Wednesday night after church I had just shared with him how I felt God wanted us to increase our missions giving even though I had no idea how we could do that and that we needed to trust that God would provide and then Drew had shared with me how he had gotten a raise. Here I was sharing with him what i felt God was leading us to do, and ALREADY God was providing! I could not see that on Wednesday because I allowed our long list of "needs" to get in the way. I was broken. I sat there and just bawled because here I was rejoicing one minute for how God provided over and above my need at the chiropractor, yet blinded to how God AGAIN provided for us over and above so that we could give to Faith Promise for the second year with increase!!
So, what is the lesson in this? I need to be so careful that I don't allow worry and the stress of the bigger picture cloud my view of the blessings that God provides my family! If God can provide in the absolutely awesome way that he did this week for the one little area of my chiropractor bill then why can't he also provide for our needs later down the road when we have this second child? Why can't he also provide the money for every single one of our list of needs? I learned a lesson for sure this week. I need to put away the worry about the things of tomorrow and I need to trust that God will provide just like he promised! I don't know how we will make it tomorrow, next month, next year...but I saw God provide for me this week! I need to trust that he will provide for me tomorrow, next month, and next year and stop looking at what we don't have and simply look to the One who owns it all.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Friday, October 26, 2012
Note on Job...
I am going to finish up the book of Job and then give a synopsis of what I have learned that I can apply to my life...be watching for the post!!
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
When Your Suffering Seems to Great
Ok, so trying to really understand all that Job's friend Eliphaz is saying as a way to try to help Job after this time of crisis in his life. It has taken me a little while and I have been rereading the passage the last couple of days. Nothing highlighted in pink, but definitely some deeper passages.
From what I can understand, Eliphaz has come to Job telling him that it is because of some secret sin in his life that he has had such tragedy befall his household. The key verse in chapter 4, I believe is verse 17, which says, "Can mortal man be in the right before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker?" Obviously, the answer is yes and no. I say this because I do believe that when we come to God confessing our sins and turning from them to do what is right, we are then right and pure before God. Do I believe it lasts? No. We are sinners. Can we be forever pure and right in the eyes of God? No. Not while we are living on this sin cursed earth. Eliphaz is basically saying that if Job accepts his situation as God's discipline on his life then he will be spared any further trouble and will live to be a "ripe old age" (5:26).
I do not believe that bad things come into our lives as consequences of sin all the time. Do I believe that the consequences of sin are devastating on our lives? Yes. But I do not believe that God always brings us through the hard times as a result of sin. We know the back story to Job. We know that before God he was called blameless. Obviously, in the life of Job the tragedy was not because of sin, but rather as a time of testing to see if his faith would hold steadfast.
Job responds to his friend, Eliphaz in chapters 6-7. He longs to die in hopes of alleviating his suffering. And in 6:10 says, "...I have not denied the words of the Holy One." Referring to the fact that he has not concealed a sin as his friends suggest he did.
In chapter 7, Job turns to God. He feels his suffering is too great for him and he loathes his life. Have you ever been to this place? Have you ever felt that the pain and suffering you were experiencing in your life was too great? I know many have. I have been there when my mom passed away. It is so easy to get into a depression of sorts when you are at such a low point in your life. Keep your focus on God when hard times come and you feel you cannot go on anymore. God is still there with an outstretched arm ready to pull from the sea of suffering when you feel like you are drowning. Cling to God during those times. It is only then that you will find your way out and you will experience joy in the midst of suffering.
From what I can understand, Eliphaz has come to Job telling him that it is because of some secret sin in his life that he has had such tragedy befall his household. The key verse in chapter 4, I believe is verse 17, which says, "Can mortal man be in the right before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker?" Obviously, the answer is yes and no. I say this because I do believe that when we come to God confessing our sins and turning from them to do what is right, we are then right and pure before God. Do I believe it lasts? No. We are sinners. Can we be forever pure and right in the eyes of God? No. Not while we are living on this sin cursed earth. Eliphaz is basically saying that if Job accepts his situation as God's discipline on his life then he will be spared any further trouble and will live to be a "ripe old age" (5:26).
I do not believe that bad things come into our lives as consequences of sin all the time. Do I believe that the consequences of sin are devastating on our lives? Yes. But I do not believe that God always brings us through the hard times as a result of sin. We know the back story to Job. We know that before God he was called blameless. Obviously, in the life of Job the tragedy was not because of sin, but rather as a time of testing to see if his faith would hold steadfast.
Job responds to his friend, Eliphaz in chapters 6-7. He longs to die in hopes of alleviating his suffering. And in 6:10 says, "...I have not denied the words of the Holy One." Referring to the fact that he has not concealed a sin as his friends suggest he did.
In chapter 7, Job turns to God. He feels his suffering is too great for him and he loathes his life. Have you ever been to this place? Have you ever felt that the pain and suffering you were experiencing in your life was too great? I know many have. I have been there when my mom passed away. It is so easy to get into a depression of sorts when you are at such a low point in your life. Keep your focus on God when hard times come and you feel you cannot go on anymore. God is still there with an outstretched arm ready to pull from the sea of suffering when you feel like you are drowning. Cling to God during those times. It is only then that you will find your way out and you will experience joy in the midst of suffering.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Does our View of God Change Based on Our Circumstances?
Oh, the story of Job. I know we can all probably say that we have had our fair share of bad days, but I think we could all agree that Job's bad day is far worse than any we have ever experienced.
Job had seven sons and three daughters, seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred oxen, five hundred donkeys, and many servants. He was known as the greatest of all the people! But before the Bible mentions any of the things that he possessed it states something even more important. It states that Job was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.
Most of us are familiar with the story of Job. But if not, here is a quick synopsis:
Satan came to God one day and challenged that if God removes His hand of protection from all that Job has that surely Job will curse God. So God tells Satan that all that Job possesses he can touch, except Job's life. So, what happens next? Job's children are killed, his livestock taken and his servants killed. Then to make matters even worse Job is struck with sores from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet. He is left with only his life and his wife. And then his wife says to him, "Curse God and die!" In all of this the Bible says Job did not sin.
How would we have responded in Job's situation? Would we have cursed God? Would we have sinned? Would our view of God change based on our circumstances? For many people it does. For many people all it takes is one thing to go wrong (in their eyes) in their life and they ask God, "Why did you do this? How could you have done this?" And they stop trusting in God and they stop following God because all of a sudden he is not worthy (in their eyes) of their worship and devotion. How strong is your faith and trust in God? Do you say, "I will follow you, God, if...." That should not be true of our lives. Yes, we all go through trials in our lives. Yes, all trials are there for a reason. We may not ever know the reason, but the truth remains. God is in control and whether our circumstances are good we should praise Him and whether our circumstances are bad we should praise Him. Our trust in God should not be a conditional trust. If your trust in God is conditional, get this area in your life right today! Strengthen your relationship with God. Promise to serve Him and follow him no matter outcome of the situation! Because that is true devotion! God showed us the truest love and devotion when he sent His Son to die for us. Can we not show our appreciation to Him by living our lives dedicated to His service?? I would challenge you to search your heart as I have searched my own and truly dedicate your life to God unconditionally!
Job had seven sons and three daughters, seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred oxen, five hundred donkeys, and many servants. He was known as the greatest of all the people! But before the Bible mentions any of the things that he possessed it states something even more important. It states that Job was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.
Most of us are familiar with the story of Job. But if not, here is a quick synopsis:
Satan came to God one day and challenged that if God removes His hand of protection from all that Job has that surely Job will curse God. So God tells Satan that all that Job possesses he can touch, except Job's life. So, what happens next? Job's children are killed, his livestock taken and his servants killed. Then to make matters even worse Job is struck with sores from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet. He is left with only his life and his wife. And then his wife says to him, "Curse God and die!" In all of this the Bible says Job did not sin.
How would we have responded in Job's situation? Would we have cursed God? Would we have sinned? Would our view of God change based on our circumstances? For many people it does. For many people all it takes is one thing to go wrong (in their eyes) in their life and they ask God, "Why did you do this? How could you have done this?" And they stop trusting in God and they stop following God because all of a sudden he is not worthy (in their eyes) of their worship and devotion. How strong is your faith and trust in God? Do you say, "I will follow you, God, if...." That should not be true of our lives. Yes, we all go through trials in our lives. Yes, all trials are there for a reason. We may not ever know the reason, but the truth remains. God is in control and whether our circumstances are good we should praise Him and whether our circumstances are bad we should praise Him. Our trust in God should not be a conditional trust. If your trust in God is conditional, get this area in your life right today! Strengthen your relationship with God. Promise to serve Him and follow him no matter outcome of the situation! Because that is true devotion! God showed us the truest love and devotion when he sent His Son to die for us. Can we not show our appreciation to Him by living our lives dedicated to His service?? I would challenge you to search your heart as I have searched my own and truly dedicate your life to God unconditionally!
Thursday, October 18, 2012
But God Meant it for Good.
Genesis 46-50
I just want to park on this topic for a little bit. I did not get to highlight much in pink today as the book of Genesis came to a close with the death of both Israel (Jacob) and Joseph. In 50:20a Joseph responds to his brothers who have come asking for forgiveness by saying, "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good..."
We were able to see so clearly how Joseph could have looked at his many different situations where he probably dealt with feelings of rejection, fear, betrayal, etc. But he did not let that stop him. He seemed to always know God had a plan even when times of trial seemed long. I am sure he felt like he would never get out of the prison. He had a moment of anticipation when the cupbearer was released and he hoped that he would be remembered. But the cupbearer forgot! So, he was left to wait even longer before finally being released and oh how God used him!
Can we say that we have the same attitude towards those who do evil towards us? Probably not. Our normal reaction is to get even or to say wrong things about those people. But is that the right attitude? It does not say what Joseph might have thought in his heart, but he seemed submissive to whatever situation God placed him in. Let's strive to have the heart of Joseph and to remember that when people do us wrong, God has a plan and a purpose for everything!
I just want to park on this topic for a little bit. I did not get to highlight much in pink today as the book of Genesis came to a close with the death of both Israel (Jacob) and Joseph. In 50:20a Joseph responds to his brothers who have come asking for forgiveness by saying, "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good..."
We were able to see so clearly how Joseph could have looked at his many different situations where he probably dealt with feelings of rejection, fear, betrayal, etc. But he did not let that stop him. He seemed to always know God had a plan even when times of trial seemed long. I am sure he felt like he would never get out of the prison. He had a moment of anticipation when the cupbearer was released and he hoped that he would be remembered. But the cupbearer forgot! So, he was left to wait even longer before finally being released and oh how God used him!
Can we say that we have the same attitude towards those who do evil towards us? Probably not. Our normal reaction is to get even or to say wrong things about those people. But is that the right attitude? It does not say what Joseph might have thought in his heart, but he seemed submissive to whatever situation God placed him in. Let's strive to have the heart of Joseph and to remember that when people do us wrong, God has a plan and a purpose for everything!
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Only God Can Turn a Tough Situation into Something Beautiful
Genesis 41-45
Even though there was not much that I highlighted pink in these passages I thoroughly enjoyed reading the account of Joseph and his brothers. The main truth that I absolutely love is how God can take even the toughest situation, and the sin of people to bring about so much good and to work all things for His honor and glory! We see that so clearly in the story of Joseph!Joseph's brothers do not like him because he is favored by his father and because it seems Joseph can be a little on the proud side. So, his brother's plot to kill him. Reuben steps in and keeps them from killing him, but his brothers end up selling Joseph as a way to get rid of him. So, then the brother's have to come up with a lie to tell their father and take his coat of many colors and put blood on it and tell their father that Joseph was killed by a beast.
You might think that this was all bad for Joseph, but he ends up in Potiphar's house and is made the overseer of all that Potiphar has. Well, because Joseph was good looking, Potiphar's wife looked and lusted and tried her hardest to get her way and get Joseph in bed with her. Well, Joseph would not and so then Potiphar's wife pulled his robe off and lied to her husband saying that Joseph was trying to commit sin with her. So, Potiphar throws Joseph in prison.
Well, because Joseph was an outstanding man, he was put in charge of the prison! And to make a long story short ended up interpreting Pharaoh's dream about the coming famine, was made second in command in Pharaoh's house and then along comes his brother's seeking food during the famine. Egypt had food because of Pharaoh's dream and them being able to store up for the time of famine. Well, so Joseph recognizes his brothers and tests them and gets them to bring his brother Benjamin and then eventually he reveals his identity to his brothers and sends for his father and provides for his family in the midst of the famine!!
It is such an awesome picture of the divine providence of God! And I love it! Our God can use us no matter our sin and no matter our faults! He can turn a tough situation into one that is beautiful and one that works out for our good and ultimately God's glory! We need to remember this when we go through trials. As women we can almost float along on our emotions and forget this truth! We must not be steered by our emotions, rather we need to be firmly rooted in God's truth! Let us have that firm foundation that permeates every aspect of our lives so that when the storms of life come we are ready because we know that on the other side there is a rainbow and a promise that God is by our side and will get us through no matter how rough the seas of life may be!!
What Happily Ever After Really Looks Like...
Ok, this is not part of my Bible reading, but it has been on my mind a lot this last week since my husband flew overseas on a trip. And today I decided to just add my pondering's to this blog since it is women focused. So, hold on...I am going to be pretty transparent! And yes, this is dedicated to my husband, whom (even for all of the weird quirks he has) still holds my heart!
When we get married or even before we get married we dream of the "happily ever after" part of falling in love and spending our lives with that one special man. Those of us who are married know the hard work involved in order to make a marriage strong and last for that "ever after." And, no, it is not always happily. In fact, any married person who is honest will tell you there are a lot of "un-happily" parts of marriage.
This was the first time that Drew and I have been apart for this long of a time since we have been married. Honestly, I think he was looking forward to a break away from me! lol! I am human and I am a sinner and, yes, I do drive my husband a little nutty sometimes! And to top it all off I am pregnant and chasing around a 1 year old all day! I am most likely not the most amazing person to live with most days. Yes, I am guilty of nagging when the garbage needs to go outside or when I am sick and tired of picking up dirty socks all over my house and always there is a pair of shoes in my kitchen or living room that don't belong! But, in all honesty, that is life. That is part of living with another person. Drew works so hard at his job each day trying to support a growing family that is constantly getting bigger! Then he sacrifices of his time and gives so much of himself to our church. He has such a big heart and I love him for that! Then he comes home and takes care of Aaron and I and the needs that we have here as a loving father and husband.
In the throes of life, I don't always see this. I get selfish (as I mentioned in yesterday's post) and I demand that he serve ME more! I see his faults and the areas where he needs to improve in order to make MY life more pleasant. This isn't right. And I have done this to him way too many times! I need to keep my focus on my husbands amazing qualities! I need to focus on how much my husband DOES accomplish in his life. I need to lift up my husband and encourage him to keep doing a great job! I need to remember this week, and remember that what is most important is that I have my husband! And he loves me! Just like the sweet phrase describing Isaac and Rebekah "...and he loved her." Such a short simple phrase, but there is so much to that! I have that love!
So many marriages these days fall apart. And he is blaming her and she is blaming him, but really they both need to look at themselves and see that they are selfish sinners! Of course a marriage is not going to work if both people are being selfish! Marriage is not a 50/50 relationship. Instead I would say it is a 100/100. What do I mean? If you will give your husband 100% of yourself and not allow selfishness to reign in your life, but be completely self-less then you will get back 100% satisfaction! Will it be easy? No way! This goes completely against human nature! But I believe it is God's way! It pains me to see marriages fall apart because I think of my own life and I can see how if I or my husband did think differently on marriage (we are both committed to our relationship no matter what) the easy thing even a while ago would have been to get out! It is the easy thing to do. But I would not have found happiness.
My husband and I have been through MANY tough moments! The biggest and toughest issues we have dealt with have been finances and our big house remodel (which is still going on after almost 4 years!). We have had many "spats" over the last 5 years and each one I look back on I did not have the right attitude or response! Thats just how it goes. But I know this...my husband means everything to me and after being apart for a week (and I still have about a week before I see him again) I am looking forward to having him back in our home safe and sound even with all of his annoying quirks! Because I love him! I know he isn't perfect. He married an imperfect person. But he is MY husband. And I have shared so many special moments of my life with him. For all of the tough moments where we did not see eye to eye and the moments where he just drove me nuts, there are at least 10 (or more) moments that I can look back and I am thankful I got to share those with this man! Were they all happy moments in my life? No. But they were moments where I needed my husbands strong shoulder to lean on and moments that I would not have wanted to have shared with anyone else.
So I would encourage you. If you are not married, draw so close to God during this time and focus your life on building your relationship with him as you wait for your husband. Because when you do get married, I promise you will need to lean on God so much in order to have that "happily ever after!" That is the great secret to a "happily ever after" kind of marriage. It is a marriage with God at the center of EVERYTHING! Those moments where we struggled were moments that we left God out. And for those who are married, keep God at the center of your marriage! If your husband does not know God, be the kind of wife spoken of in the Bible and he will see a difference in your life! And if your husband does know God I would like to share with you what a very godly woman shared with me on my wedding day: When you are the most mad and upset at your husband, remember your wedding day and remember WHY you married this man.
I cannot imagine life without my husband! It is for this reason that I can say that we have a "happily ever after."
When we get married or even before we get married we dream of the "happily ever after" part of falling in love and spending our lives with that one special man. Those of us who are married know the hard work involved in order to make a marriage strong and last for that "ever after." And, no, it is not always happily. In fact, any married person who is honest will tell you there are a lot of "un-happily" parts of marriage.
This was the first time that Drew and I have been apart for this long of a time since we have been married. Honestly, I think he was looking forward to a break away from me! lol! I am human and I am a sinner and, yes, I do drive my husband a little nutty sometimes! And to top it all off I am pregnant and chasing around a 1 year old all day! I am most likely not the most amazing person to live with most days. Yes, I am guilty of nagging when the garbage needs to go outside or when I am sick and tired of picking up dirty socks all over my house and always there is a pair of shoes in my kitchen or living room that don't belong! But, in all honesty, that is life. That is part of living with another person. Drew works so hard at his job each day trying to support a growing family that is constantly getting bigger! Then he sacrifices of his time and gives so much of himself to our church. He has such a big heart and I love him for that! Then he comes home and takes care of Aaron and I and the needs that we have here as a loving father and husband.
In the throes of life, I don't always see this. I get selfish (as I mentioned in yesterday's post) and I demand that he serve ME more! I see his faults and the areas where he needs to improve in order to make MY life more pleasant. This isn't right. And I have done this to him way too many times! I need to keep my focus on my husbands amazing qualities! I need to focus on how much my husband DOES accomplish in his life. I need to lift up my husband and encourage him to keep doing a great job! I need to remember this week, and remember that what is most important is that I have my husband! And he loves me! Just like the sweet phrase describing Isaac and Rebekah "...and he loved her." Such a short simple phrase, but there is so much to that! I have that love!
So many marriages these days fall apart. And he is blaming her and she is blaming him, but really they both need to look at themselves and see that they are selfish sinners! Of course a marriage is not going to work if both people are being selfish! Marriage is not a 50/50 relationship. Instead I would say it is a 100/100. What do I mean? If you will give your husband 100% of yourself and not allow selfishness to reign in your life, but be completely self-less then you will get back 100% satisfaction! Will it be easy? No way! This goes completely against human nature! But I believe it is God's way! It pains me to see marriages fall apart because I think of my own life and I can see how if I or my husband did think differently on marriage (we are both committed to our relationship no matter what) the easy thing even a while ago would have been to get out! It is the easy thing to do. But I would not have found happiness.
My husband and I have been through MANY tough moments! The biggest and toughest issues we have dealt with have been finances and our big house remodel (which is still going on after almost 4 years!). We have had many "spats" over the last 5 years and each one I look back on I did not have the right attitude or response! Thats just how it goes. But I know this...my husband means everything to me and after being apart for a week (and I still have about a week before I see him again) I am looking forward to having him back in our home safe and sound even with all of his annoying quirks! Because I love him! I know he isn't perfect. He married an imperfect person. But he is MY husband. And I have shared so many special moments of my life with him. For all of the tough moments where we did not see eye to eye and the moments where he just drove me nuts, there are at least 10 (or more) moments that I can look back and I am thankful I got to share those with this man! Were they all happy moments in my life? No. But they were moments where I needed my husbands strong shoulder to lean on and moments that I would not have wanted to have shared with anyone else.
So I would encourage you. If you are not married, draw so close to God during this time and focus your life on building your relationship with him as you wait for your husband. Because when you do get married, I promise you will need to lean on God so much in order to have that "happily ever after!" That is the great secret to a "happily ever after" kind of marriage. It is a marriage with God at the center of EVERYTHING! Those moments where we struggled were moments that we left God out. And for those who are married, keep God at the center of your marriage! If your husband does not know God, be the kind of wife spoken of in the Bible and he will see a difference in your life! And if your husband does know God I would like to share with you what a very godly woman shared with me on my wedding day: When you are the most mad and upset at your husband, remember your wedding day and remember WHY you married this man.
I cannot imagine life without my husband! It is for this reason that I can say that we have a "happily ever after."
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