One: A Marriage Devotional by Jimmy EvansÀpẹrẹ
A Blessed Marriage
God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them. (Genesis 1:27-28)
If you could ask God to do anything for you—what would it be? It’s my hope that one of the first things you would think to ask Him to do would be to bless your marriage. After all, in God’s heart, marriage is a priority. We know that because of this passage from the Book of Genesis.
Here we find that God created man and woman, and then He immediately established marriage. Marriage was God’s idea, and He blessed Adam and Eve’s. Verse 31 tells us: “God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.” Adam and Eve’s marriage was very good as a result of God’s blessing—they had the perfect marriage!
The word blessed in this passage of scripture means “to endue with power for success, prosperity, fertility and longevity.” When God blessed them, His Spirit came upon Adam and Eve and empowered them to succeed in every area. God was an active participant in their lives. As long as they followed His will for their marriage, they experienced great blessing. Their marriage was very good!
However when Adam and Eve rejected God’s involvement and made decisions solo, they moved out from under His blessing and experienced the curse instead. The same thing happens in marriages today—some marriages are wonderfully blessed while others are miserable. This isn’t because God has favorites. It’s due to the fact that some couples are following God’s will, while others aren’t. Really, it’s a choice.
When you yield your life and marriage to God’s will, you can expect Him to bless it. That’s also when you begin to experience a little bit of heaven on earth!
Talk It Out | Spend a few minutes identifying the areas of your marriage in which you are experiencing God’s blessing. Are there other areas that might be lacking in blessing because you haven’t asked or God’s involvement or sought His will in the decisions you’ve made? These areas might include finances, communication, your friendships, sensitivity to each other’s needs, etc.
Take a few minutes to pray together and recommit every area of your marriage to God.
Walk It Out | Make a special gesture to your spouse this week that tells what a blessing he or she is in your life.
God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them. (Genesis 1:27-28)
If you could ask God to do anything for you—what would it be? It’s my hope that one of the first things you would think to ask Him to do would be to bless your marriage. After all, in God’s heart, marriage is a priority. We know that because of this passage from the Book of Genesis.
Here we find that God created man and woman, and then He immediately established marriage. Marriage was God’s idea, and He blessed Adam and Eve’s. Verse 31 tells us: “God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.” Adam and Eve’s marriage was very good as a result of God’s blessing—they had the perfect marriage!
The word blessed in this passage of scripture means “to endue with power for success, prosperity, fertility and longevity.” When God blessed them, His Spirit came upon Adam and Eve and empowered them to succeed in every area. God was an active participant in their lives. As long as they followed His will for their marriage, they experienced great blessing. Their marriage was very good!
However when Adam and Eve rejected God’s involvement and made decisions solo, they moved out from under His blessing and experienced the curse instead. The same thing happens in marriages today—some marriages are wonderfully blessed while others are miserable. This isn’t because God has favorites. It’s due to the fact that some couples are following God’s will, while others aren’t. Really, it’s a choice.
When you yield your life and marriage to God’s will, you can expect Him to bless it. That’s also when you begin to experience a little bit of heaven on earth!
Talk It Out | Spend a few minutes identifying the areas of your marriage in which you are experiencing God’s blessing. Are there other areas that might be lacking in blessing because you haven’t asked or God’s involvement or sought His will in the decisions you’ve made? These areas might include finances, communication, your friendships, sensitivity to each other’s needs, etc.
Take a few minutes to pray together and recommit every area of your marriage to God.
Walk It Out | Make a special gesture to your spouse this week that tells what a blessing he or she is in your life.
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Develop a thriving relationship with your spouse through this marriage-building devotional from Jimmy Evans and Marriage Today. Read from this plan once a week, or each day for a more intensive investment.
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We would like to thank Jimmy Evans and Marriage Today for providing this devotional. For more information, please visit: www.marriagetoday.com