Don't Let Go

Over the past month or so God has been speaking to me about marriage. But, not simply marriage, the roles of wives and husbands, as well.

It seems like it all began sometime around the beginning of July. I first wrote a post, in honor of my 13th wedding anniversary, and shared my and M's love story. Not long after, I began hearing of people close to me having trouble with their marriage.

Then, I was presented with two opportunities. The first, to participate in a 30-day devotional, in which the focus was to discover how to be a wife that seeks after God. The second, being a part of a monthly link up, which sets up accountability for wives and girlfriends, as they develop goals for themselves and their relationships. Today is the first day of that new link up, hosted by Amberly and Kalyn.

I am now on day 23 of the 30-day Wife after God devotional, by Jennifer Smith, and have realized the overwhelming importance of being intentional in my marriage. For me, part of being intentional is setting goals. And, if I go back and look at the roots of this blog, I find that setting goals was one of the reasons I began writing here.

While there are many quotes from Wife after God that I could share, the two that have stuck with me are these:

Although the love between a husband and wife is powerful, marriage will always be vulnerable and fragile. 

Marriage is vulnerable because it is an intimate union between two sinners. 

If we let things go in any area of our life, we are bound to have trouble. If we let go of healthier eating and/or exercise, we are destined to gain weight or, at least, as one friend put it, end up "a little more squishy" than we desire. If we stop being intentional about our duties at work, we are bound to miss deadlines, which may impact our effectiveness.
The same is true in marriage. If we just let it go, if we simply go through the motions of each day or each life experience, without being intentional about our thoughts, attitudes and actions, our beautiful, yet vulnerable union is destined for trouble.
As I was writing this post, O came in the room and asked me to help him make a tunnel with two empty toilet paper rolls. He brought with him a roll of double-sided tape and asked if it was the right kind of tape to make a tunnel. I knew it wouldn't work, because not only would it stick to the toilet paper rolls, but to anything else it came in contact with, pulling at the place where the two parts of the tunnel were joined.
We cannot put our marriages together with double-sided tape. If we do, we are opening ourselves up to the possibility that we might cling to something else, other than our spouse. We must be able to let go of the world, while staying stuck to God and each other. But, how can we do this?

My goal for August is simple. Prayer. 
I am committed to pray for myself, as I continue to seek God. For my husband, that he would be protected by and draw closer to God. For our marriage, that it would be focused on God and what He has planned for us.

It is my desire to be intentional about protecting my marriage. This month, I intend to do that through prayer. I hope you will join me.