Marriage

"Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins." 1 Peter 4:8

Marriage is truly a blessing, except when it is not. Too often, we forget to pray about our second most important relationship. Of course, our relationship with God is first, then our marriage should be second.

The Bible is full of stories of God’s redeeming love for us, His mighty power, and the stories of people whose lives have been completely turned around. (Saul to Paul)

No one is ever too far gone that the Holy Spirit cannot reach them, “God’s arm is not too short to save, nor his ear too deaf to hear you call.” Isaiah 59:1

Family

"We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord, about his power and his mighty wonders." Psalm 78:4

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 tells us, “And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.”

Our responsibility is to teach our children about God and His love for them. We cannot hope they will learn about it on their own, and we cannot depend on the church to do our job for us.

If we are to leave a legacy of faith for our children and grandchildren, we must talk about God and His commandments with our children and grandchildren. But just as important, we are to live holy lives and pray for them daily.

Will we always get it right? Of course not. That’s where God’s grace comes in, and He uses our effort and makes the most of it. God’s word will accomplish what He sends it to do.

We don’t have to be a skilled teacher or preacher. We just have to be faithful.

Emotions

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and save those who are crushed in spirit." Psalm 34:18

Sometimes life has a way of knocking us down. As hard as we try, things still go wrong, people still disappoint us, and it seems like none of our plans work out like we want.

God gave us our emotions. They are wonderful when we are happy or excited, joyful or hopeful. But when the storms of life come, those emotions are not so great.

Psalm 34:18 reminds us that God is always there for us, especially in our darkest times.

Sweet friend, so much more is waiting for you when you surrender your thoughts to God. Our minds are the devil’s playground. He wants nothing more than to keep you discouraged and knocked down.

But God loves you too much to leave you in that condition. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7