I realized that I missed last weeks post. Apologies! Life can get rather hectic at times, but to be honest my brain has been on a “Busi you need a holiday, even a getaway” mode. So somehow that has filtered into my blogging discipline. This week I’m sharing on love, the power and place it holds in our marriages. Two weeks back we had our monthly wives club meeting and as usual it was just a time of growth, laughter and making room for the Holy Spirit to minister and teach. We listened to two teachings and one was by Joyce Meyer on submission. Each of the ladies took time to share in which areas and why they struggle with submission to their husbands. The teaching got me inspired to spend some time re-reading a couples devotion that my husband and I have. On day two of the devotion, a question was posed to me as the reader, “If love began fueling your decisions, what would it drive you to do for your marriage?”
Powerful question! In my mind I had the longest list answers, so many things I’m still yet to do for and with my husband. The question was why hadn’t I done them?! The Word of God has so much about love. It is also very clear about God’s stance on the emotion. 1 John 4:7-8 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. “ He is not for love, He is not about love, He is not mindful of love, He does not embrace love, He does not just speak about love, no, HE IS LOVE! I love how God takes time to clarify his viewpoint. In a nutshell God is saying that the absence of love in any relationship, well in this case in our marriages, makes for a meaningless marriage. Love therefore is fundamental to the success of any marriage. It is love that compels us to act selflessly, it is loves that drives us to be considerate and kind, it is love that helps us to see the best in our spouses when circumstances don’t approve, it is loves that helps us to pray for our marriages, it is love that brings us to forgive when we have been wronged and it is love that brings a husband and wife together.
This tells me that love is the purest and most powerful motivator in a marriage. Yes it is true, that love reaches far beyond marriage, it is important to note though, that it is a God-given key to it’s success. 1 Corinthians 13:2 “If I have all the faith, so that I can move mountains , but do not have love, I am nothing. “ As my Father, He cares more that I embody who He is in my marriage, than believe Him for peace in the midst of storms. The heart of God is beyond me, so far removed from man’s way of thinking that at times it can be quite difficult to fathom how much we are loved and how capable we are of loving. Unmatched, thoughtful and beauty personified is my God’s love. I’ve found that marriage has a way of revealing God’s numerous characters. And in this season I’m choosing to see Him as a loving Father, that is patient enough to teach me what real love is and make me a loving person in the process.
I’m currently spending time meditating on 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. Such a popular passage of scripture, one that is rarely left out at marriage seminars and conferences, and even books for that matter. God took time to show us and leave us with an example of love. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 is more than beautiful poetry, it reveals the characteristics of mature love. One of the many remarkable features of Jesus is that He loved with a perfect and holy affection. I chose to personalize the passage of scripture and take ownership of who God says I am. I’ve replaced the words “ love” or “it” with my name. My prayer to God is that it may be a reality in my marriage and my life as a whole, in the smallest to the biggest of ways. This passage of scripture has allowed the Holy Spirit to show me my weaknesses and help to build on my strengths.
This is the personalized version: “Busisiwe is patient and kind. Busisiwe is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Busisiwe does not demand Busiswe’s own way. Busisiwe is not irritable, and Busisiwe keeps no record of being wronged. Busisiwe does not rejoice about injustice, but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Busisiwe never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful,and endures through every circumstance.” By personalizing the scripture I soon realized that marriage is not about trying to change my spouse. Rather, this is a journey of exploring and demonstrating genuine love, even when my desire is dry and my motives are low.
So I pose the same question to you as the reader. If love began fueling your decisions, what would it drive you to do for your marriage?
#MarriageMonday
xx
