A Praying Spouse II
When was the LAST TIME you PRAYED for your spouse?
It’s a peculiar part of our promise to each other, because it speaks of self. We can be rich or poor together, as well as succeed and fail together… but sickness is an individual thing. The husband I spoke of in part 1, referenced his wife’s addiction to a sickness, like a cold. On our wedding day, we think of this passage as one of those benefits that in some cases, we’ll enjoy. I admit, that when I’ve caught the flu and was in bed with a fever and the chills, it was nice being taken care of by my wife. Unfortunately (I think), I don’t catch colds and things that often, so I had to enjoy that benefit perhaps once a year. She on the other hand, caught a cold almost every 3-4 months. Still, like everyone speaking these vows, we look forward to the time when we can prove that part of our love and devotion. Making tea, chicken soup, or tucking them in under the covers. Our love for them wants them to get better, and we follow it up with action.
But what if the sickness, is spiritual?
What happens to a cold left untreated? It becomes the flu. What happens to the flu left untreated? It becomes pneumonia. There is no progression after pneumonia. If pneumonia is left untreated, you could die. This is why we take colds so serious with our loved ones, especially our kids. Good parents keep an arsenal of medications, ready to treat the first sign of a cold. How easy it is to recall our mother’s when they heard us sneeze.
What do we do when that cold is spiritual?
What do we have at the ready, to treat our loved ones… or do we know how? The purpose of spiritual sickness is to keep you from communicating with your Lord and Savior, by making you think you are the exception to His Mercy… that what you’ve done or said, is not worthy of His Love. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Praying for our spouse isn’t just a remedy… it’s a process. The first thing we have to understand is that the impact of a sickness (spiritual or otherwise) can vary with each host. For example, being exposed to drugs (having never had an issue with them) may not affect you as it would someone with history. What our mother’s knew and understood about sickness is that it must be treated immediately. I’m sure we all have at least one good memory of being in bed, with the covers drawn all around us, maybe sweating, with a thermometer in our mouth or perhaps sitting up in bed, being fed homemade chicken soup. I guess it shouldn’t be that much of a surprise, as we all come from our mother’s wombs therefore, we are a part of them. It is similar, yet very unique when it comes to our spouse. Though we did not come from their womb, we are distinctively connected.
‘Therefore shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh’. Genesis 2:24
Part of the wisdom of marriage is that whether we like it or not, anything that affects one, affects the other. Silence is not a medication for a marriage. ‘If I don’t say anything, it’ll just go away’ only works in the movies… wait, it doesn’t work there either. When we see our spouse suffering; when what is affecting them; it begins to infect your marriage, it’s time to kneel…
PRAYER – Dear Heavenly Father, there is a sickness in my marriage that only You can heal. My frustration causes me to be unable to see the light at the end of these difficult times. I pray dear Lord that You lay Your hands on my marriage and heal us both. We are ‘one flesh’ and I know You hold us accountable for each other. Replace that sickness with an increased desire to love each other, and to glorify you… together.
I ask this in Jesus name… Amen.
Marriage is a blessing and a privilege, not completely enjoyed by many due to the diseases that infect them daily. A healthy prayer life is our first line of defense against any and all things that may cause harm to our marriages. If your marriage is healthy or you feel there aren’t any major issues at present, it would still benefit the both of you, to establish a sound prayer life, together. Listening to our spouse pray for us in God’s presence can be both inspirational and intimate at the same time.
Stay tuned for part 3 – THE FUTURE
