What is the one thing that will guarantee you a strong, long, and blessed marriage?
Many possibilities may be going through your mind… love, trust, faithfulness, honesty…
But I guess I should rephrase my question. WHO is the one that will guarantee you a strong, long, and blessed marriage?
And that Who, my friends, is Jesus.
Keep reading, I promise this won’t be preachy!
In any unhappy and struggling marriage you will generally find one common link. Jesus is either not present or has been put on the back burner for one or both of those involved. The strongest of Christians can struggle in their marriages, even when their spiritual lives are strong, because although we recognize Jesus as God in many parts of our lives, we forget to bring Him into our marriage.
But here’s some hope for you today. Jesus cares. Not only does He care, but He has the power to resurrect your marriage, no matter how broken.
And whether your marriage is struggling or not, Jesus wants to be part of it.
Now I’ll be honest, we are not the Christian couple of the year. We really don’t study the Bible together apart from our weekly Bible study group, we are not the best at praying together, and our conversations don’t automatically go to theology.
Oh how I love grace, because I feel complete freedom to tell you all that and no shame. 
But even if you are like us and studying the Word and praying together is not in your daily agenda, there are some practical ways you can make sure Jesus is in your marriage. Here are some I have found work well for us:
- Praying for one another daily. Now, don’t go back. You read right when I said we are not good at praying TOGETHER daily. But we do pray for one another daily. And even this was a struggle until we talked about it one day and realized we both needed an improvement. So we decided to make it a priority. We set a daily alarm on our phones to alert us and remind us to pray every day at 2:00. It has been so neat to feel prayed for and to lift up my husband every day, at the same time. We’ve seen growth because of it and highly recommend setting a time in your day to do the same.
- Find time to go deep. As I said before, our conversations don’t typically go to theology, but often we try and make it a point to make sure we are having meaningful, God-centered conversations. After church and Bible studies is a great time to make this happen. Ask one another what you thought of the sermon/discussion. Ask questions of one another and don’t be afraid to admit if you don’t understand or don’t agree. Those conversations are often the best!
- Praying with one another. Yup, again I admit we are not the best at this and do not do it daily. But, we have tried to make it a point to pray together during important events in our lives. On our way to go house hunting, on the way to important doctor appointments or before a crazy work day. Making it a point to pray together as often as possible not only brings you closer to the Lord but also to each other.
- Sending scripture to one another. As I write this I realize this is something we were great at doing while dating but have struggled with as we’ve gone throughout our married lives. One way that Matt really blessed me in this way was about a year ago, on the morning of my National Counselor Exam. I have never taken a more difficult test in my life and was very anxious leading up to it. Matt left early for work that morning, but when I got up I found notecards all over the door with verses such as Philippians 4:13 and encouraging words telling me I could do it. This small gesture meant the world to me and gave me such hope and peace.
The smallest of efforts can lead to amazing results. While these small things don’t seem like steps to save a marriage, they are directions leading you to the One who can save your marriage. Whether you feel like it or not, whether you think your marriage needs it or not, and whether your spouse is into it or not, you can bring Jesus into your marriage. And I promise you, even the smallest of efforts can lead to the biggest of results.
I’m praying for you and your marriage this week. That you will allow Jesus in and allow Him to work. I’m excited for the blessings you will undeniably receive!
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”
Matthew 7:7
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10
“He replied, ‘Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.’”
Matthew 17:20