Resilient: Powerful Hope in a Dangerous WorldSample

Have you ever noticed how much our relationships define our lives? When we think back to our childhood, we think about the friends we made and the kids we played with on the playground. As we get older, our school experiences shape us. We don’t just remember our multiplication tables and the periodic table. We remember the lunch table. We can still remember the people we liked… and those who liked us.

Relationships matter, and the truth is we think about them all the time. There is a reason for this – we were made for relationships. We were built to connect with other people. But here’s what we have to admit…people are messy. God has tremendous love for all of us. The instructions He gives us in the bible are meant to give beauty and order to our lives. In 1 Peter and Ephesians 5, God gives instructions for one of the most foundational and profound relationships of all – between husbands and wives.

Not only does God want married couples to have a great relationship with each other, but He also wants them to have a great relationship with the rest of the world. God wants marriages to be so filled with love and intention that people outside the church are compelled to know Jesus.

The message of Christianity is founded on the beautiful principle of sacrificial love. God calls both husbands and wives to put the other first. He calls men and women to show devotion and kindness to one another. God desires that our love for each other flow from the love that is changing us…the love of God.

Take some time in prayer.

Reflection Questions

1. Are you trusting God for your relationships?
2. Are you approaching your closest relationships with selfishness or sacrificial love?
3. Where do you need healing in your heart to offer selfless love to others?

Ask God to show you again how much He loves you. Ask God to allow His love to flow through you into the lives of those closest to you.