Priorities: God First
We serve a mighty God who desires to be first in our lives. When we are obedient to His will and put Him above all else, we will experience success and have a blessed life. There will still be hardships, but they will be surrounded by peace that passes all understanding. Putting God first in your life is the foundation of a successful marriage.
Exodus 20:3-5 say, “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God.”
Matthew 22:37,38 - “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.”
When you first marry and experience that overwhelming love like you’d never known before, it’s difficult to imagine loving God more than your spouse. I remember trying to grasp the concept and couldn’t get close. I wasn’t walking with God then, so that was part of my difficulty.
As a seasoned Christian married for 28 years, it makes perfect sense to me now. I’ve seen the blessings God has showered on my marriage because of our obedience. It’s easy to put God first, knowing how much better life is with Him than without Him. I don’t ever want to regress to the time where I put my SELF ahead of God or my relationship with my husband. Life was miserable then.
In our numerous years of counseling couples, the common ingredient that gets in the way of a healthy marriage relationship is SELF. When SELF abounds, that means God is not the top priority. Until you turn your life over to God to do His will, you will not experience the successful marriage He desires for you.
If you don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and know God as your Heavenly Father, I urge you to seek Him today so you can get your life and your marriage on the right track.
If you would die today and aren’t sure that you’d go to heaven, please read the sinner’s prayer below out loud. Think about it for a while, then look at it again and try to understand exactly what it means to you. Reading it aloud will not save you unless you truly mean it from the bottom of your heart. God will know if it’s heartfelt or not.
Begin to talk to God through prayer and work out your salvation with Him. If you need help, go visit a local Christian church. Someone there will be more than willing to help you. You can email me and I’d be happy to speak with you.
SINNER’S PRAYER
“Father, I know that I have broken your laws and my sins have separated me from you. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward you. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.”
*Taken from “AllaboutGod.com”
Repeating this prayer from your heart is only the beginning of a relationship with Jesus Christ. Don’t think that you can now sit back and relax because you have a one-way ticket to heaven. While we are saved by grace, we are expected to produce fruit in our Christian walk. That means we need to continually strive to do God’s will, and reach out to others as we are called to do.
We also need to apply God’s principles to our marriages so we can have a healthy relationship with our spouse as God intended. Enjoy the journey! You may want to stop and ask directions from some fellow Christians.
Exodus 20:3-5 say, “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God.”
Matthew 22:37,38 - “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.”
When you first marry and experience that overwhelming love like you’d never known before, it’s difficult to imagine loving God more than your spouse. I remember trying to grasp the concept and couldn’t get close. I wasn’t walking with God then, so that was part of my difficulty.
As a seasoned Christian married for 28 years, it makes perfect sense to me now. I’ve seen the blessings God has showered on my marriage because of our obedience. It’s easy to put God first, knowing how much better life is with Him than without Him. I don’t ever want to regress to the time where I put my SELF ahead of God or my relationship with my husband. Life was miserable then.
In our numerous years of counseling couples, the common ingredient that gets in the way of a healthy marriage relationship is SELF. When SELF abounds, that means God is not the top priority. Until you turn your life over to God to do His will, you will not experience the successful marriage He desires for you.
If you don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and know God as your Heavenly Father, I urge you to seek Him today so you can get your life and your marriage on the right track.
If you would die today and aren’t sure that you’d go to heaven, please read the sinner’s prayer below out loud. Think about it for a while, then look at it again and try to understand exactly what it means to you. Reading it aloud will not save you unless you truly mean it from the bottom of your heart. God will know if it’s heartfelt or not.
Begin to talk to God through prayer and work out your salvation with Him. If you need help, go visit a local Christian church. Someone there will be more than willing to help you. You can email me and I’d be happy to speak with you.
SINNER’S PRAYER
“Father, I know that I have broken your laws and my sins have separated me from you. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward you. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.”
*Taken from “AllaboutGod.com”
Repeating this prayer from your heart is only the beginning of a relationship with Jesus Christ. Don’t think that you can now sit back and relax because you have a one-way ticket to heaven. While we are saved by grace, we are expected to produce fruit in our Christian walk. That means we need to continually strive to do God’s will, and reach out to others as we are called to do.
We also need to apply God’s principles to our marriages so we can have a healthy relationship with our spouse as God intended. Enjoy the journey! You may want to stop and ask directions from some fellow Christians.
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