Verse of the week - II Corinthians 4:18

This is a partial repost of something I posted earlier, to keep it fresh on my mind for this week. So many rich Scriptures to pray through as God softens my heart and keeps my eyes alert to new ways of loving and showing love to my husband.


This first week lays the foundation for all the ones to follow. I commit to spending time in prayer at least twice a day for myself, Charles, and our marriage.


I remember in Created to be His Helpmeet, the author talked about picking a trigger to remember to pray for your husband (red lights, car horns, billboards, a certain store, an activity, a time of day, etc.) That can be very helpful for establishing a habit of praying. Personally, it has worked well for me to find a specific time in my routine that I pray for my husband. I pray in the morning when I first get up (hopefully before the kids have gotten me off of that train of thought), and I pray before bedtime. I usually think of him and pray throughout the day as well, but I know for certain that those two times will not get missed.


Once you have found a time to pray, it is helpful to have purposeful prayer during that time. I have appreciated the prayers in the book The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian. I'm on my second copy of this book as I wore out the first one. Each day has a specific prayer infused with Bible verses. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking to establish a firm prayer base for her husband.


The first day she says to pray for your husband's wife. :-) I love that. If I really want to lift up my husband, I need prayer, too! I love these sentences from her prayer:

Make me my husband's helpmate, companion, champion, friend, and support. Help me to create a peaceful, restful, safe place for him to come home to. Teach me how to take care of myself and stay attractive to him. Grow me into a creative and confident woman who is rich in mind, soul, and spirit. Make me the kind of woman he can be proud to say is his wife. I lay all my expectations at Your cross. I release my husband from the burden of fulfilling me in areas where I should be looking to You . . . Give my husband a new wife, and let it be me.

Here are some verses to incorporate into your prayers this week for yourself and for your spouse . . .

Praying for struggles:
I Corinthians 10:13
I Peter 5:7

Growth
Galatians 6:9

Character/integrity
Psalm 25:21
Psalm 40:1-3

Fruit
Galatians 5:22, 23
John 15:5,8,-10


When we pray through Scriptures we can pray with confidence. I also pray that God would continue to grow joy in my heart and attitude toward enriching my marriage. This should never come about out of duty or drudgery, but from joy and love. I pray that God would continue to give me a passionate joy to fall in love with my husband in a fresh way each day and be the best wife possible for him.