Praying for Our Husbands (part 8)

Today is the day to pray for your husband’s back. Both his physical back to be strong & healthy and his spiritual back.

In Ephesians 6:10-20, in talks about putting on the whole armor of God… the belt of truth, the breast-plate of righteousness, feet with the gospel of peace, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, & the Sword of the Spirit. All of these ways to keep your body covered, but nothing for the back! I believe that is because we must charge forward to the next battle. It is the front of the body that needs to be covered… we will not turn & run!

I love the verse that says, “Therefore understand today that the Lord your God is He who goes over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and bring them down before you; so you shall drive them out and destroy them quickly, as the Lord has said to you.” Deuteronomy 1:30 With God leading us like that, we can rest assured He has got our back.

So as you pray for your husband’s back, ask God to keep him strong & moving forward in all God has for him & your family. Pray protection in the physical & spiritual, knowing & believing that no weapon formed against him will prosper. (Isaiah 54:17)

Know that praying for your husband means you have got his back!

Rejoicing in Truth!

Carin

Praying for Our Husbands (part 7)

With Valentine’s Day only a few days away, it seems like a good time to be praying for your husband’s heart! The unseen part that made you “fall” in love with him! Or at least I hope it was his heart! (*wink*)

“Guard your heart more than anything else, because the source of your life flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23

No heart… no life! It is the central-hub of all of life… daily choices, life-long decisions, joy, desire, affection, thoughts, understanding, purpose, will, faith, & brokenness… so much for his ticker to cope with! That is why it is so vitally important that his heart be right with God! (I know it is important for all of us, but right now we are praying for our husbands!)

As you pray for your husband’s heart, remember you are praying for the part of him that is who he really is… all that he loves & treasures most! Ask the Lord to give him discernment to prioritize it all. Pray for the Holy Spirit to flow through the well-spring of life… your husband’s heart!

Rejoicing in Truth!

Carin

Praying for Our Husbands (part 6)

Next we move on to his shoulders… carrying the weight of the world! Or at least the burdens of the family… in most cases, for finances, safety, his job, his children’s future & the happiness of his wife… to mention a few of the important ones. Let us lift those burdens off his shoulders by lifting him up to God in prayer.

“Turn your burdens over to the Lord, and He will take care of you. He will never let the righteous person stumble.” Psalms 55:22

This might sound old-fashioned, according to the Bible, whether the husband is the bread-winner or not, he is still the head of the family. And the only way for your husband to lead your family down the right path is with God as his guide. Doesn’t it give you peace of mind to know that your prayers are playing a big part in the “success” of your husband & ultimately, your family!

Keep loving on him through your prayers!

Rejoicing in Truth!

Carin

Praying for Our Husbands (part 5)

Day 5… praying for your husband’s neck… the connecting point from the head to the rest of the body. The mind, eyes, ears & mouth… those parts might be the leading force in this, but the neck makes the choice. Literally & figuratively, the neck turns the head… will it turn to something not so good or will it keep focused straight ahead on God’s plan?

Our husbands on a daily basis have so many decisions thrown at them, some serious & some not so serious… push the snooze one more time & possibly be late, take the time to eat breakfast or grab a donut at work, have lunch with a friend or work through lunch to get out of work on time, spend family time or hide out in front of the TV.

“Finally, brothers & sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Philippians 4:8

From creation God gave us the gift of choice. As a loving Father, He wanted us to choose to love Him & follow Him… if He forced us to do that than that wouldn’t be love… would it? Choosing to follow God’s plan or choosing to follow a self-centered plan… hmm, not much of a choice when it’s put like that! Another way to look at it… living in peace or living in stress & turmoil.

I know that when I am stressed the first place I feel it is in my neck, it always feels great to have it rubbed. So, ladies, as the opportunity arises, lay hands on your husband & pray for his neck… give it a little rub… he will wonder what he did to deserve such nice attention! Keep him guessing! *Ü*

As you pray for his neck, ask God to help him make the right choices throughout the day. Ask Father to turn his head towards the good things He has for him with benefits for eternity & away from self-centered choices where he will never find fulfillment.

Keep going, ladies… you are making a difference!

Rejoicing in Truth!

Carin

Praying for Our Husbands (part 4)

How’s it going so far ladies? Do you believe your prayers are making a difference? Have you seen a difference in the way you love your husband? Not yet? Keep it up… it will come!

I spent many years trying to change my husband into what I thought he should be. I know my words were not always the kindest… I was very critical of how he did things, like my way was right & his way was pretty much always wrong. If I am totally honest about it, I wanted to control every situation, pretty much. (UGLY!) Then one day, God spoke to my heart about unconditional love. Ouch! I realized I had no clue of what unconditional love looked like… receiving it is easy… giving it not so much. The question I had to ask myself was did I marry this man to change him or did I marry him to build a godly life & marriage? That was when I came to the conclusion… I had to trust God enough to make us, as a couple, into the dynamic duo He wanted us to be for Him. No, it is not perfect, but it is always improving… after all look what God has to work with… humans being renewed daily! *Ü*

So, day 4… praying for our husband’s mouth. Words are so important! Life & death are in the power of the tongue! (Proverbs 18:21) I love how the verse just before that says, “A man’s [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil].”(v. 20) Have you heard the saying, “you’ll eat your words”? Maybe this scripture is where that phrase came from.

Your husband’s daily life is determined by the words that come from his mouth. His words have the power to change the environment around him. Read what it says in James 3:3-10 about words & the mouth. The bad news… no man can tame the tongue! The good news… with God all things are possible! (Luke 1:37)

Ladies, as we pray… we need to pray that the words our husbands speak would be words that will have a life-giving impact on his life & also on the people he can influence around him. Ask God to set a guard over his mouth & keep watch over the door of his lips. (Psalms 141:3)

Let me just encourage you a little more… Father is so proud of you, His daughter, for loving your husband (or future husband) enough to intercede for him… going before Father on his behalf is a good thing! And besides, “He who finds a true wife finds a good thing & obtains favor from the Lord.” Proverbs 18:22

Rejoicing in Truth!

Carin

Praying for Our Husbands (part 3)

So far we have prayed for his mind, his eyes, up next… his ears!

I know for myself what I listen to has a big impact on me. I am irritated by little noises, like the ticking of a clock (time is just tick-tick ticking away!), or someone that makes mouth noises when they chew! Once we sat in front of this older couple in church & during the message all I could hear was this man behind me snapping his gum!!! I actually had to pray for God to close my ears to that distracting sound so I could pay attention to what the pastor was saying! Right or wrong… I tend to have the TV or music going all the time just to have noise in the house. But there are those moments when God says, “Enough is enough… just take the time to be quiet with Me.”

“Those whose hearts understand what is right get knowledge.
    The ears of those who are wise listen for it.” Proverbs 18:15

Our husbands can have a lot of noise coming at them during the day, the buzzing alarm clock, the phone ringing, honking horns, complaining co-workers, irate customers, kids screaming, & yes, even the naturally talkative voice of their loving wife! In all this hub-bub of the day, we need to pray that God will lead them to not hear what is harmful & to take in what is good & uplifting. And even more importantly, that they would hear the Holy Spirit speaking to them from the inside… God’s gentle whisper can speak way above the noise of the day when a wife prays this for her husband.

The heart of the home maybe the wife, but a God honoring husband will lead the home in the right direction! God is doing great things in our families, ladies… keep up the good work!

Rejoicing in Truth!

Carin

Praying for Our Husbands (part 2)

Okay, ladies, next we will pray for his eyes. Not sure why God made men to be such visually stimulated creatures, but that is just the plain truth. Maybe it is to our advantage on those days when we are not looking our best so they can still see the beauty in the one they love & adore! Alright, I’ll take that!!!

In this day of HD TV, everything you can see on the internet, & women dressed provocatively on the street… our husbands need us to pray for their eyes. I see beauty in the world all around me that is good & for my husband to notice the beautiful things or people God has created that is good too. The problem comes when that is the only focus… when he is drawn in by such things, it sets him up to be discontented & dissatisfied with what he has lying next to him at home. Remember, it is not about us, so please don’t take it personally… it is about him letting his eyes wander to places he shouldn’t.

“The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure and bright, enlightening the eyes.” Psalms 19:8

We are not called to monitor our husband’s actions… we are called to pray for him to keep his eyes on what God has for him. Don’t spend your time pointing out every little thing you think he is doing wrong. Instead, invest your time praying for him… that he will have the willpower to look away from things that may tempt him & to keep his focus on the important things in his life.

They say the eyes are the window to the soul… well, if that is true then we need to be praying for our husbands’ “windows” to be opened to all God has for him, & that he will pull the shades on all that the enemy tries to distract him with.

Rejoicing in Truth!

Carin