Pray for Your Husband

Several weeks ago, I was driving home on a long, curvy road that was as boring as a physics lecture oozing from the lips of monotone college professor. I began talking with God because it always helps time pass. During this time of communing, He spoke to me using a terrible tornado that had passed through my town a few days ago as His starting point.

The sight of uprooted trees and damaged homes startled me as I navigated the winding road through the countryside. Debris was strewn in yards, fences were broken in half, and several houses stood apart from their foundations. In the midst of all this devastation God spoke to me about my marriage. He reminded me of the terrible storm that blew through my relationship.

The strong gusty winds of fear, anger and depression uprooted the covenant I shared with my husband. Like the houses separated from their foundations, my spouse and I experienced a similar disconnect. God showed me that sometimes things need to be torn down so that they can be rebuilt. It was part of His plan to use my pain to make our marital foundation stronger than before. The next step He required as part of the process required me to build a foundation by praying for my husband.

If God would have spoken to me like this several years ago, I would have tuned Him out! However, the situation is a bit different. A storm had caused my marriage to fall from its foundation.

Not only did God commanded me to pray for my husband, but He showed me how. God reminded me of His Word living inside me and helped me find inspiration. That encouraged me to pray more.

God also helped me see that much like the damage caused by the negative winds of a tornado, I was not using my power properly. Coming to grips with what God said was not an easy pill to swallow. Instead of using my power to pray for my husband, my misplaced power was used against him. For example, when we would attend church or Bible study and the pastor would ask the congregation to turn to a specific scripture, I would grab the Bible and race to find it. I was letting my husband know that my extensive training through God's Word made me better. Better to do what?

What is God requiring you to do today for your marriage? To whom much is given much is required.

My experience with God during that evening drive caused me to come to grips with who I was as a wife. God was going to rebuild my marriage just like an architect would rebuild those broken homes alongside the road. However, there were some things required on my part.

• I had to count up the cost (Luke 14:28). What is the price to rebuild a marriage the way God intended for it to be and what was I willing to pay?
• I had to obey. Making the decision to totally surrender to doing it God's way is not easy, but is worth it.
• I had to pray for my husband. It is through prayer that God provides the strength to endure.
  

The process of tearing down and rebuilding is lengthy. It will not happen overnight. There may be some days when it rains. There may also be days when the sun shines. You may even want to quit and give up because the finished product is taking to long. God knows what your marriage needs. Partner with him to rebuild it. No matter how long it takes, keep praying for your husband.

God was purging my old way of thinking to line up with His ways. (He wants wives to support and build up their husbands.) However, this cannot be done, unless we pray for our husbands and marriages. As I prayed for my spouse and marriage, the power of God began to change me, and I learned to love again.

You may wonder why God uses wives to pray for their husband's. Well, I believe it because we were made from man's rib and are closest to the man's heart. We know what our husband's need more than anyone. There is no stronger connection than a man and a women. So when you pray for your husband, watch God change you . . . and your husband too.