Held Together

They have been married for many years. They get along good most of the time but still have an occasional dispute. And they can be doozies! During one of these disputes, you would think they were enemies. Someone needs to remind them who the real enemy is. It enters their home, sometimes unknown to them. It invades their thoughts and makes them at odds with each other. They both have a stubborn streak and this enemy uses that to frustrate them. It’s in the words they speak to each other.

They were trying to resolve a certain issue. She gets angry, frustrated and almost ready to give up on the marriage. He is closed off and doesn’t want to deal with it. They are Christians, serving God, giving of their time and resources. If you saw them at church or at the store you would think they were the perfect, happy couple. During this unresolved issue, she had many sleepless nights. After hours of tossing and turning she finally fell asleep and had a dream.

She was laying on a floor with something painted on it. He was lying there also. The tops of their heads were touching. The painting was a pentagram. An enemy was mocking and spitting on them as it circled around them.

They knew they were going to die soon. They were on fire.

She said to him, “see you in Heaven.”

She wakes up startled and goes to wake him up. Shaking him, she’s crying and yelling, “We cannot let the enemy destroy our marriage! And we are not enemies and need to stop treating each other like we are! We are a team and must fight this ugly enemy together. I love you and I know you love me.”

Mark 3:25 “If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.” Divided means split; not united. We must work at being united. You can disagree without being divided. We have a choice to make. We choose to divide our home by criticizing, nagging and belittling our spouse. Or we can choose to love unconditionally and value each other.

Oh, if we could only hear ourselves when we treat our loved ones as the enemy. Have you ever lost a loved one and had regrets of words you may have spoken to them? That should be enough to help us try harder never do it again. But we do.

How can we work as a team in the hard times? Unity is the goal, glorifying God in the process.

Cooperate instead of compete.

Value your differences.

Embrace each other’s uniqueness.

Discuss in love.

Forgive.

Be kind to one another.

Maybe God allows that thing your spouse does that irritates you so you might learn how to love unconditionally. Or it could be a lesson in forgiveness.

What holds you together is far greater than what can tear you apart.

God wants to hold you together. The enemy wants to tear you apart.

Marriage is hard but not impossible to be good.

“Let no one split apart what God has joined together.” Mark 10:9

 

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to forgive me for the times I have allowed my bad attitude, selfish motives and unkind words almost destroy our marriage. Thank you for your grace, truth and love. Help us to work together, with You, to build a happy home. Thank you for joining us in unity, as one. In Jesus Name, Amen.