Forever Beloved

Faith, Love & Truth

40 day fast and prayer for marriage

last week, as i was reading unveiled wife, i saw that her and her husband are going to do a 40 day fast and prayer for their marriage.  after a little talk with mr. cutler, we decided it was something we wanted to do as well.

there are two questions she said to ask…
what are you fasting from?
what are you fasting for?
joe and i have decided to keep those decisions private and just shared between our hearts. 
here is a little exert from her blog…

when you fast from something, it should be something that would be a challenge for you to give up.  fasting from something is a sacrifice and it represents the sacrifice Jesus made for us dying on the cross for our sins so that we could have eternal life with God.  every time you desire that thing you gave up in the next 40 days, it should remind you to thank Jesus for His sacrifice and it should remind you to pray.

if this is something that super excites you (like it did us), if you feel God is convicting you to do it or something you think you might just want to try, pray about it and do it along with us.  the devil sure is hard on marriages, and gives us so many hard times.  consider and pray about joining us in this fast and pray that God will restore your marriage.  joe and i know first hand how He can wonderfully work miracles!

out for now
~kisses

cherishing your vows {serving}

remember the vows you were almost too nervous to repeat, “to love, honor, and cherish…as long as we both shall live”?  these aren’t just pretty-sounding words.  God takes them very seriously, and He expects husbands and wives to do the same.  these are strong words, filled with meaning.  if every couple kept these definitions in mind, and actively used them in our relationships, we would all be much happier.  even if we already have happy marriages, there is always room for improvement.

i strongly believe that the key to a happy marriage is to learn how to serve each other, to love each other with a true servants heart.  it’s hard because we are programmed not to serve.  the world says that marriage should be half and half, equal and filled with give and take.  the world convinces us that not only do we need that but we deserve it.  and anything less deserves a ticket straight out of the marriage.  we are living in a selfish generation where people look for excuses to run and quit.  

Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.
Matthew 19:4-6

what is serving love?  you have a willingness and desire to serve and be totally committed to meeting their needs.  you absolutely want to honor them and put their needs before your own.  you have to purposely take a lower place to honor another (remember this post on humility…see a connection here?).  it flows from strength, not weakness.  it allows you to live out your vows to each other.

marriage is not 50/50.  so many married people have the outlook that they will only do their part if their spouse does theirs.  if that is the outlook you have on your marriage, chances are it is suffering somewhere.  put in your full 100% and expect nothing in return.   don’t measure the percentage you are willing to give to meet your spouses needs.  you have to care enough to give your all while expecting nothing in return.  once you establish that, serving love becomes so much easier.  give selflessly to meet your spouses needs and you will both feel loved, honored and respected.

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
John 15:13

you have to commit 100% to serving God and serving each other.  when you serve your spouse it not only shows them respect but it also shows respect to God.  you are honoring marriage as He intended it.  

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.
Romans 12:9-10

this weeks challenge:  practice serving love…make alone time a priority, honor your spouses favorite things, say please + thank you, allow them to just be themselves, praise them to others and compliment them in front of others.  and enjoy the love, honor and respect you get in return!!!

out for now
~kisses

ps…don’t forget to stop back next saturday for our last session, celebrating love…

kindness matters

kindness is such a powerful thing yet so underused. in today’s society it is very easy to come across those who are unkind. it’s easy to come into contact every day with at least one unkind person. think about the person at the mall you hold the door open for, who walks right past you without saying thank you. think about Christmas time, what should be the most loving time of the year is normally when you encounter the most unkind people.

kindness is honestly one of the greatest gifts you can give someone. as Christians, kindness is something He expects from us. it allows Christ’s love to shine through us.  He doesn’t want us to be unkind, we are to be different.

And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

Ephesians 4:32

we need to learn to be tenderhearted. when we start being tenderhearted, it’s easy to be kind. having a heart that is easily touched and sensitive doesn’t mean your weak. although that’s what the world would say. if we are sensitive to those around us, we start seeing their needs instead of our own.  have a loving, tenderhearted, compassionate attitude and let it shine for everyone to see.

Do to others as you would have them do to you
Luke 6:31

acts of kindness don’t have to be be huge, expensive, flashy ordeals.  smile at someone, hold the door for them, give them the 30 cents they are searching for for their McDonalds order, help them carry their bags to the car, hug them when you can see they need one, take time to talk to them and pray with them and for them.

you can change lives with your actions.  you can change lives with your kindness.  you can change lives by allowing Christ’s love to shine through you.  you might be the one voice in their life at the moment that they need to hear.  your encouragement might be the one thing that keeps them going.  maybe you are the one who is to help them see Jesus.

your actions, words, prayers and love matter.  your kindness matters.  it matters to those who receive it and it matters to Him.  you might not be able to help everyone, but you can help someone.

out for now
~kisses