Love in Marriage, Part 2

Chuckle: The Sunday School teacher asked, "Now, Johnny, tell me, do you say prayers before eating?" "No Sir," he replied. "We don't have to. My mom is a good cook!"

 

Good Quote: "If we love people, we will see them as God intends them to be."  --unknown Author 

 

LOVE IN MARRIAGE (Part 2)          

 

    "May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you" (I Thessalonians 3:12-13 NIV). "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her"  (Ephesians 5:25 NIV). ". . . and the wife must respect (and love) her husband"  (Ephesians 5:33b NIV).

 

In Paul's second letter to the Thessalonians, he commended them because their love for one another was increasing.  It is God's will that we grow in love for each other.  Paul also reminds us that husbands are to love their wives so much that they would be willing to die for them as Christ died for His church. This degree of love should flow both ways in the family circle. Let's look at some ways you can help your love to grow for your family.

    First:  Appreciate the fact that God loves each member of your family as much as he loves you. "For God so loved the world" means he loves equally the husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, parent, grandparent.  We need to love each member of our families because of their infinite worth in God's sight.  The next time you look into the face of your wife, husband, or child, think about how precious she/he is to God.  As you consider the value of your family members in God's eyes, their worth increases in your eyes.   

    Second:  Have a healthy love and respect for yourself.  If you do not appreciate and respect yourself according to God's instructions, it will be impossible for you to properly love and appreciate your spouse and others.  When Jesus told us to "love your neighbor as yourself," He was affirming a healthy love for ourselves.  However, Paul tells, "Do not to think more highly of ourselves that we ought, . . ." (Romans 12:3 NIV).  If you suffer from low self-esteem (sense of worth/value), you will look at others in the same way.  As you  recognize how precious you are to God, it will help you to respond to the truth that God loves and values each of your family members equally.   

    Third: Practice loving your family with actions, not just words.  One of the most difficult things to give away is kindness, for it's usually returned in more than full measure.  "A pastor was kind to a young lady in his congregation. Later she made for him a beautiful plaque that contained the letters TALK in vertical order, with the beautiful message below it, 'Try A Little Kindness.'" It was her way of saying "thank you" for his kindness.

How long has it been since you tried a little kindness on your marriage partner?  Your children?  Your parents?  Many times we're kinder and more considerate to others than to our own family members.  Those closest to us deserve our most expressive acts of kindness.  Kindness is an expression of love that even the deaf can hear and the blind can see.

Love, Jerry & Dotse