ICS Daily devotions
How Should We Treat Our Spouse in a Covenant Marriage?
In today’s world, it is all about the big “I”. No-fault divorce, sex-obsessed media, liberal courts and a culture idolising youth, all send the same message, “If the relationship ceases to give me what I want, if it gets tough or boring, I can walk away and start all over”.
Many failed to realise that each partner in a marriage brings into the relationship, years of mental, emotional and spiritual baggage. The adjustments required when two start living together in a marriage present all kinds of emotional suitcases to pop open, revealing the good, the bad and the ugly. Rather than facing the problems and working to salvage the marriage, many are taking the easy way out through a divorce. In the process, hearts are broken, homes are destroyed, and the collateral damage is rippling throughout the society as a whole.
So how do we treat our spouse in a covenant marriage? Will their character, behaviour, habits or words hinder our love and commitment to them? Will their failures, experiences or lack hinder our love and relationship? No! When we are in a covenant marriage, we are one flesh! Being ONE and understanding that we are ONE, we will face everything together.
Creating unity with our spouse is our first priority as “one flesh”. One has to give the same attention to the edification of their spouse as they do in building themselves up in the Lord. For one spouse to get far ahead of the other spiritually is like having the right leg muscle more developed than the left.
God did not create Eve with a bone taken from Adam’s head or else the woman would be above the man, nor from his feet or she would be under him. Instead, God took it out from Adam’s rib so that she would be beside him in all that he did.
Men tend to communicate about a specific matter at hand, while women prefer to communicate for the relational interchange itself. So, men need to pull away from their goal-oriented objectives in order to understand their wives’ personal relational orientation.
We also need to walk in love and forgiveness towards our spouse otherwise our prayers will be hindered.
1 Peter 3:7 Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding…that your prayers may not be hindered.
When we speak to our spouses, it is important to encourage and not to demean them, for the tongue has the power to build up or to destroy.
Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
We can make these six promises to our spouse:
1) I promise that I will always love you.
2) I promise that, after God, you will always be my first priority.
3) I promise that I am forever committed to this relationship and will always work on this relationship.
4) I promise that I will forgive you and work through conflicts.
5) I promise that I will always be faithful and truthful to you.
6) I promise that I will always be there for you.
Sermon Series: Marriage covenant
