Study your mate

The chapter ends with this verse "By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; and by knowledge the rooms are filled with all the precious and pleasant riches (Proverbs 24:3-4)

Wisdom is knowing your spouse and them feeling free to trust you and open up to you. Do you know the dreams of your spouse? Robb and I just put together our list of 100 things we want to do in our lifetime. It's not really a bucket list but it's a goal list so we can set our minds to achieve so much together. Wisdom for us was realizing what was important to the other person and working towards achieving these goals for each other.

Understanding comes from listening. Not half hearted listening while playing a game on Facebook but truly listening to what your spouse is saying. Are they happy? Do they feel your love in the way they want to be loved? Are you setting your goals to ensure their happiness?

Knowledge comes from wisdom and understanding. God will help you discern what you should do through prayer but you can pray specifically from the knowledge you gleaned from your wisdom and understanding. And then you can fill your home with the kind of riches only love can provide.

Study your spouse, I bet they will still surprise you with their goals, dreams and needs for a house that is filled with love!

Love Cherishes

Today's Dare is to cherish the one you love. When things get a little tough, how do you cherish the one you love. This was a great devotional to read upon returning from Thanksgiving. However, for some reason instead of thinking about how thankful I am for the blessings from God, I thought about all the selfish things in my mind. It was a trying Thanksgiving and I kept blaming all my feelings on other people but in reality it was my not cherishing the relationships around me that made me angry. I needed to cherish the family surrounding me and the joys that will be involved in living life. I need to cherish my husband more, in that when he asks something of me I do it graciously and lovingly instead of with a heart that is full of malice. Today I'm thinking about ways to cherish loved ones. To understand that sometimes everyone needs a pick me up and that in doing so I support their lifestyles whether they are the same as mine or not.

For my husband, I will love and cherish him the rest of my life. He is the best thing that has happened to me and I'm so very grateful for his love, patience and understanding everyday. Especially when I'm a little nutso...So today treat your husband like your most prized item, shower him with love, show him in little ways how wonderful life is together for in this is the prize of a lifetime!

Love makes good impressions

Let's play a little game....when you haven't seen your mom for a few weeks, how do you greet her? When you haven't seen a friend for a while, what is your initial greeting for them? Do you remember your smile? The hug? The excitement and laughter? How about your children? Do you remember how your children/nieces/nephews ran up to you when they haven't seen you to greet you? Do you remember how they would continue to do that over and over even after a minute? Do you remember how when you came home from a bad day at the office, they ran and hugged you fiercely because they missed you?

Now let's think about how we greet our spouse. The person we are spending eternity with, are you as exuberant with your greeting? Does a smile the size of your face occur when you see them? Do you think they can hear your excitement over the phone just in seeing their number pop up?

Think about how you start your day with your spouse. Is it a to do list or is it laughter? Do you serve them or are you a grump? Have you put aside your own needs to ensure their day will run smoothly? Can you imagine how much better life would be if you started everyday with a smile, a giggle and a hug?

Try it today, hug your spouse in the morning, smile when they call and greet them exuberantly when you arrive home today!

The Act of Romance

So today's dare is easy if you are married, hard if you are in a relationship. It's about intimacy with your spouse. When you are dating, it's all you think about. Intimacy with your spouse and how you are looking forward to it. You spend your whole dating time saying no to that feeling and emotion. Then you get married, and you are to be intimate immediately. You are to turn off that no and just do it. It's the hardest thing. What you have been controlling you let become uncontrolled. What you are saying no to is all of sudden a yes. If you are just getting married, my advise just let it happen when it happens. There isn't a need to have it right away and it messes with your mind. God will take care of it. Now if you've been married, had an intimate relationship and it's fallen apart. This is difficult too. God is working on your heart with the Love Dare. He is taking you through all the steps again to enjoy your marriage but this is the ultimate in giving to your spouse. Because in the act of intimacy you are giving your heart and trusting again. It is definitely difficult but when you have this trust again, it's the best. The Dare verse is 1 Corinthians 7:3 "The husband must fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise also the wife to her husband." Duty isn't just the act it's everything leading up to the act, it's a clean bedroom, it's candles, it's flowers, it's listening, it's communicating, it's touching and loving. When all this is occurring in a relationship, intimacy is sure to follow. May God Bless your relationship today.

Leaving and Cleaving

This was a great read today. Leaving and Cleaving. When you are younger the leaving involves family and creating a new family with your husband. However, when you are older it also involves friends and family. I needed to break the ties with friends, family and work to ensure my relationship with my husband is the highest held relationship in my earthly world. He is the most important part of my life given to me by God. Robb and I became one life and together with God on our side we will be one. I will cleave to him and he to me. Some don't understand that leaving doesn't mean I'm never going to talk to you again. It means that I'll listen and understand but ultimately if it affects my life with my husband then I may not be able to do it like I used to. For instance, going out with just the girls. I will go to hang with the girls at someones house, baking Christmas cookies or watching a chick flick, however, I won't go bar hopping and dancing into the wee hours of the night. That would be disrespectful to my husband. I know some will say that's boring but my life with Robb is anything but boring. I love him and the commitment we made together. It worth giving up everything I used to be to be with him forever! Are you prepared to leave your old life behind? Changing how you interact with others to ensure your marriage is one, first and foremost in your mind always?

Fireproof

As I am watching my friends go through a divorce, I am reminded about the decision to love. I am reminded that even in the hard time we need to stick together. I am reminded how much I love my husband. I am reminded that God will send angels to protect us from our own minds. I have many favorite songs from the movie however this one Love is not a Fight really hit home with me. Listen to the lyrics and make the commitment to shut the door and throw away the key. Love is not a fight but it's worth fighting for...definitely!!! I'm so sad for my friends and I don't know what to do. I want them to be happy but I also want them to fight for their love. I want them to Dare each other to Love like never before. I want to Dare you to Love like you haven't before. Ask questions, listen and pray for each other. Love is a decision, commitment, a covenant and then an emotion...remember that always! Amazing things happen when we let God do His thing with our Love.