Read: Galatians 5:16-25 & Psalm 119:105

Most of us remember very little about our early childhood years. We don’t remember the first meals we had, the first toys we played with, or the first words we said. What we do remember is needing someone to help us until we could walk on our own without stumbling.

Learning to walk with Jesus is a lot like learning to walk. We need help taking our first steps in faith. Sure, God uses other believers to help us take our next steps. That’s why being involved in a local church is critical to your growth with Christ. You can’t do life alone.

In Galatians, Paul encourages us to walk by the Spirit instead of following our fleshly desires.
When we walk by the Spirit, we are helped and supported as we follow Jesus daily. When we walk with Him, it is impossible to not be following Him. When we walk with Jesus, our next steps are always guided to a place of goodness and mercy.

Take a minute to ask yourself: What are some ways you can be walking by the Spirit? Where in your life are you following your own fleshly desires?

Read: Matthew 9:14-15 & Ephesians 5:22-32

Christ chose marriage as the metaphor to explain His relationship with the Church. This is the scariest thing about marriage. Christian marriages are to exhibit Christ’s relationship with the church. Yet in our culture today, marriage is based on fleeting feelings of love or contractual benefits. God takes it so much more seriously than that. It is a covenant, not an emotional high or mere contract; and precisely because God takes it so seriously, we should not take it lightly. We should understand and adopt His view of marriage.

The covenant between Christ and His church is based on the character and power of God, and is therefore unbreakable. Ephesians says wives are to submit to their husbands as the church does to Christ. Husbands are to love their wives as Christ loves the church, who loved her and “gave himself up for her.” How many marriages reflect this? The husband leads his wife by laying down his life for her, not lording authority over her. The wife submits to her husband as if she were submitting to the Lord. Nowhere in this picture do we see the husband demeaning, dominating or being passive. Nowhere do we see the bride manipulating or taking control. But rather, in Christ’s relationship with the church there is joy, peace and love because there is right order. It ought to be the same in our relationships.

Read: Ephesians 5:25

The American people have developed a delightful sense of entitlement. Since our first day as a country we have enjoyed the unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This ideal in itself holds no evil, but the manor in which we have twisted it and the implications we have attached it have caused us to misunderstand the nature of this truth. We have lost the meanings of these words, and redefined them as the rights to wealth, health, and beauty. It is a travesty to reduce the idea of happiness into such fickle trinkets, yet it has seeped into every facet of our lives, our credit cards, and our marriages.

According to the scripture, we voluntarily suspend our rights when we enter into the marriage covenant.

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her”

Jesus did not maintain his rights as he hung on the cross for us, and it says that men must suspend themselves for their wives as a reflection of Christ’s love for us. Wives are called to submit to their husbands which holds difficulty that hardly needs explaining. Now, this idea of giving yourself up for someone is not at odds with happiness because the fruit that grows far transcends happiness into joy. But it means taking a terrifying first step. It means that you must be willing to give and not receive anything back thus adopting the true heart of service. Then the miracle happens, the joy begins to blossom, and the giving up of your rights transforms from a burden to a blessing.

What does it take for you to place the importance of your spouse’s life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness above your own? When will you let the American Dream quit defining your marriage?

Read: Matthew 11:28-30 & Isaiah 40:28-31 & Psalm 62

Sometimes it is just plain difficult to be single. Regardless of the circumstances that might have put us there—whether it was divorce, death, heartbreak or just a prolonged season of waiting—we are sometimes consumed with the weariness of facing this life alone. And some days, the weight of that weariness feels too heavy to even pick up and place at Jesus’s feet. It’s in those moments that we have the most important decision to make. Will we let the weight of the weariness settle in and cripple us with bitterness and impatience? Or, will we fall at Jesus’ feet and let Him trade us His yoke for ours?
Jesus makes us this offer in Matthew 11:28-30 when He says, “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you…For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Unfortunately, when He uses the words “easy” and “light,” He is not necessarily offering us different circumstances. Instead, His offer is to take the heaviness of the yoke that weighs us down with inadequacy and loneliness. He wants to replace it with His yoke, which is much lighter and filled with joy, peace and hope. His yoke will relieve us of our weariness because it will allow our souls to find rest and allow us to take a deep, refreshing breath. His yoke will lead us to find purpose in our season of singleness and to find out how amazing His love is for us. That sounds like a pretty good exchange to me!

Read: Job 29:14 & Ephesians 4:22

While most men don’t spend a lot of time worrying with their outer appearance, I have noticed that practically without fail, men leave the house with clothes on. In the few cases where someone would leave home without any clothes on, we would say that person is off their rocker. Putting clothes on is considered the acceptable, normal, everyday thing to do.
How many men think of their daily time with God as absolutely essential part of their clothing?
Just as we put on a garment of clothing, we are to clothe ourselves in righteousness each morning. Ephesians 4:22 says, “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”  Every day we put off the old and put on the new.
While this doesn’t mean that somehow we must reinitiate a relationship with Jesus every day, it does mean that each day we refresh our relationship with Him. When we daily engage in the act of repentance and renewal we will continue to become more like Jesus.
This repentance and renewal are a result of daily time in God’s Word and in prayer. Leaving the house without your quiet time would be like leaving the house naked. Crazy!

Read: Philippians 2:3 & Ephesians 5:25 & Galatians 5:13

Marriage isn’t meant to be 50/50. Marriage is intended to be 100/100. Ideally, there should be no limit to how much one spouse serves another spouse, regardless of how greatly it is appreciated or how often it is reciprocated.

As a partner in a marriage, have you ever uttered the conditional phrase, “If….then”? Do these statements sound familiar?

“If she would only take better care of herself, then maybe I’d compliment her more.”
“If he would just get home from work when he says he will be home, then maybe I’ll be more in the mood.”
“If he would just help out more with the house and the kids, then maybe I wouldn’t nag so much.”
“If she would only learn to cook better meals, then maybe I wouldn’t sneak and eat out as often.”
“If he wouldn’t do so many stupid things, then maybe I’d respect him more.”

This mentality is poisonous. It feeds ourselves and excludes our mates. It puts full responsibility on our spouse and lets us off the hook. Or so we think.

In reality, this mindset breeds contempt, resentment and greed. It does nothing to build up a marriage; it only seeks to tear it down.

Paul tells us in Philippians 2:3 not to “do anything out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” Ephesians 5:25 reads, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” Galatians 5:13 reminds us of this: “You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.”

These verses and instructions from God don’t line up to the “if, then” mentality. Is it time to stop seeking to gain and start seeking to serve? To stop withholding the other 50 percent and give your mate your very best? “If not now, then when?”

Read: 1 John 5:14-15 & Hebrews 4:16

I remember when I was a kid, I used to always ask my parents for things that I already knew the answer to. “Can I have donuts for Dinner?” “Can I stay up and watch late night TV even though it is a school night?” “Can I buy these 15 action figures from the cartoon that I love?” I asked things like this all the time even though I’m pretty sure I usually knew the answer before I even asked, but that didn’t stop me.

Sometimes our prayer lives feel the same way. We petition God for healing for a sick loved one or ask Him for guidance and clarity about a job change. We can pray ourselves in circles, uncertain of His will in some situations.

But there are some issues we can pray about with full certainty and confidence, knowing we are asking for something completely in His will. Our relationships fall into that category. We can always, always, always have full assurance that God is for our relationships. He doesn’t just want our relationships to work; He wants them to be one of the greatest blessings in our lives. 1 John 5:14-15 and Hebrews 4:16 remind us we can confidently ask God to bless our socks off in our relationships because that is exactly what He wants to do.

We can beg God for fresh blessings, for healing, for renewed passion, and He will sometimes surprise us with His own better-than-we-can-imagine “Yes!”

Read: 1 Peter 3:1-7 & 1 John 3:18-22

We want our prayers to get results. To make sure our prayers are powerful and effective, we also need to examine our relationships. God tells husbands in I Peter 3:7 to “be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect…so that nothing will hinder your prayers.” He expects husbands to be in right relationship with their wives by showing them grace, respect and love. Otherwise, their prayers will be hindered.

Wives have responsibilities, too, that affect their most important prayers and hopes. In 1 Peter 3, God tells wives to be submissive, and if their husbands are not believers, “they may be won over” by their wives’ pure and reverent behavior. If your husband doesn’t know Christ, obedience to this scripture brings great encouragement.

This doesn’t just go for the married people, either. How we treat the people closest to us in life holds spiritual weight when it comes to powerful prayer and blessing. When our heart is humble and forgiving, God is please. And “if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from Him anything we ask, because we … do what pleases Him.” (I John 3:21-22)

Are your prayers effective? Maybe the solution lies within your relationships.

Read: Proverbs 31:10-31 & Hebrews 10:24

Many books have been written, sermons preached and Bible studies held about the Proverbs 31 woman. There are many lessons for women to learn from these verses, but what do they say about the man? What qualities did this woman’s husband possess?

Proverbs 31:11 says, “Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.” Yes, her behaviors build that confidence, but they are also fed by it. To know someone believes we can do something great, that we have more potential in God than is easily seen, “[spurs us] on toward love and good deeds.” (Hebrews 10:24)

This man shares his resources with his wife, considering their finances something to use together, and he trusts her with them. “She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.” (Proverbs 31:16) He realizes they can accomplish more with their wealth when they share financial decisions.

“Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.” (Proverbs 31:23) Her character and reputation bring him respect, but remember, he feeds that character. He nourishes it. His leadership at home has placed him in a position to receive respect from the community.

The Proverbs 31 woman works hard to see her family prosper, and he does not overlook what she pours out on them. “Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her.” (Proverbs 31:28) His praise brings her joy and satisfaction, puts a smile on her face the next morning as she wakes early to face another day.

A wife without the support of a Godly man can live a life pleasing to the Lord, but she is limited. In a relationship with Jesus and a husband who trusts her, shares with her, leads her and affirms her, she can accomplish more for God and her family than seems possible. It takes a Proverbs 31 man to have a Proverbs 31 woman.