Engaged With Expectations: Couples Engagement DevotionsSample

Relationship with God

God answered my prayer for a man who loved Jesus, but I still needed alone time with God. Would my husband want to read the Bible together? Would he understand I wanted to pray by myself sometimes?

You’ve finally met someone to share your life with. If you love God with all your heart, you already know how important it is to marry someone who loves the Lord. But what does a relationship with God look like as a married couple?

If you want your marriage to last forever, God should be the center of your marriage. Growing closer to God together will strengthen your marriage, but it’s also important to maintain your own personal relationship with God.

My spiritual mentor always reminds me, “Your spouse is not your Holy Spirit.”

When you face problems or trials, God should be the first person you turn to. Expecting your spouse to solve all your problems puts pressure and unrealistic expectations on your marriage. While it’s healthy to confide in your spouse so they can pray with you, it’s still important to rely on God as your heavenly Father.

As you get married, you’ll establish routines to grow your spiritual intimacy as a couple. But this doesn’t mean you’ll do everything together.

Spending time with God together every day may not be feasible for you. You may have conflicting schedules or wake up at different times. You and your spouse may also prefer to read different parts of the Bible.

If you only have time to do one thing together with your future spouse, I encourage you to pray together every day. Prayer is the most powerful thing you can do for your marriage as you share your heart with each other and with God.

Your relationship with God is unique. How you spend time with God may look different from your spouse. Both of you seeking God is what matters.

Discussion Questions

1. How do you spend time with God throughout the week?
2. How do you want to seek God together as a couple?
3. How can you make God a priority in your schedules?

Prayer

God, we want you to be the center of our marriage. Show us how to strengthen our relationship with you while seeking you together in our marriage. In Jesus’ name, amen.