Sunday Words of Encouragement February 9, 2020

Our substitute Sunday School teacher gave a lesson he titled, “Why, God?” We shared in praise and worship and then Pastor gave his second sermon regarding marriage in his series, Relationship Goals.

Last week Pastor stressed the importance of marriage and how Satan is constantly attacking marriages to separate husband and wife and separate them from God.

Last week’s point was:
Your marriage is under attack. You must choose every day to fight for your marriage together.
The enemy wants to destroy your marriage, destroy everything around you. Satan hates your marriage. Men – love your wives. Wives – respect your husbands.

This week Pastor titled his message “I Do Until You Did.”
Each couple is unique and has to learn to handle the pressure cooker that is life.
Our marriages face intense pressures, stresses and challenges -- financial, job, location changes, health, children, losses, infidelity, and so much more.

If you begin tracking what mate ‘did’ it creates problems. Keeping score will only stress love and respect. Marriage brings the two to become one. Keeping score defines the end of me and the beginning of you instead of preserving the union of “us”.

We each have the choice to model or conduct and our marriage after the example of Jesus or the example of the culture of the world. Many try to combine scriptural and secular but this still results in problems.

Ephesians defines the right attitude in marriage: Ephesians 5:15-31.
Verse 21 says, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
Marriage calls for mutual submission. It requires a conscious decision.
This is the attitude we need to hold “out of reverence for Christ”.
Some people agree to resolve issues and move on. Ephesians 4:26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,”. But others live to be offended.
There is no room for scorekeeping. Verse 15: So...be careful how you live...

Is your marriage truly reverent toward Jesus?
Is your marriage filled with the Holy Spirit?
Is your marriage (and life) Christ-centered?

The Point: Marriage must be filled with and surrounded by the Holy Spirit to make it through the pressures of this life.

Are you allowing the enemy to win?
Imitate God, not this world.
Learn to:

• Forgive quickly and fully. (Don’t let the seed of criticism and bitterness create a sickness in your heart.)
•  Love fully and unconditionally
•  Put your marriage above all else, second only to Jesus.
•  Surrender your life and surrender your marriage to Jesus. Decide to make a change in you and your approach. Decide to love and forgive first.
•  Start growing together. (Not apart.)
•  Accept help, mentoring, counseling. It is not proof of failure but proof of determination and commitment.

Fight for your marriage together, as one body!

I thought this song would fit today.

Verses for Today:
Ephesians 5:15-17, 21-22 and 28 (NIV)
15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
22 Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.
…
28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.


I praise the God of heaven and give thanks for my husband of 34 plus years. I am grateful that we learned early to make Jesus the center of our home.