Friday November 23, 2018

 

A great marriage is not something that happens by chance. A great marriage requires two people who recognize and always appreciate each other. Happy couples prioritize giving thanks over nagging and complaining. Happy couples recognize that expectations create a debt to debtor relationship; the type of relationship that little by little squeezes out the love and joy that brought them together in the first place.

 

Happy couples do not allow their hopes and dreams to turn into expectations. They understand that great marriages are not built upon a contractual relationship that is based on the distribution of labor. Happy couples understand that great marriages should be more reflective of a covenant relationship; a relationship in which they decide that they owe their spouses everything and their spouses owe them nothing in return.

 

Happy couples know that what is appreciated is also replicated. They understand that appreciation will cause their spouse to be more inclined to repeat those good deeds. They understand that when they do not say thanks, their spouse will feel unappreciated and will be more inclined to not repeat the good deeds. Happy couples also understand that appreciation is rarely expressed in a relationship where each party is doing what they are expected to do, They know that eliminating expectations creates the opportunity for appreciation, because everyone is doing what they are supposed to do and no one gets extra credit for that. No, when they do what they do, it is not perceived as payment for a debt owed but rather an act of kindness and love, and kindness and love should always be appreciated.

 

Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn’t love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that. – Ephesians 5:1-2 MSG

 

Happy couples appreciate everything their spouses do for them. They continually say thanks and they always show appreciation. Happy couples do not look at what their spouses do wrong to then nag and complain about it. They look for what their spouses do right and appreciate it, from the smallest gestures to the greatest sacrifice. Happy couples are thankful couples.

 

Heavenly Father, thank you. Thank you for your word and guidance and thank you for my spouse. Lord I appreciate everything that Jesus did for me on the cross, and I appreciate your love for me that caused you to sacrifice your beloved son to pay the price for my sins. Father, I want to show my spouse that same love, I do not want them to owe me anything, and instead, I want to make their needs my priority. Father I am grateful for my perfect help, I am grateful for my salvation, I am grateful and I want to show that gratefulness by giving and by serving my spouse by putting their hopes and dreams above my own. Thank you Lord, Amen.