Bayside Baptist Church

Jason King: It is so good to be together. I'm glad you're here. To all the fellows that your wife made you come back for this service, welcome back. I'm glad that you're here today. A couple of guys were joking beforehand that there was a group of guys coming back. I want to talk to you today in this series that we've been in. We started last week called Stronger Together, and we're learning together how to build a marriage that lasts.

What we're going to talk about today is not what you're going to hear outside of God's Word. It's not what you're going to hear in the culture around us. It's not what everybody is going to tell you the way that it should be. As we jump into God's Word today, I believe God has a word for you.

If you're engaged or you're dating and you're dreaming about or looking forward to marriage one day, you need to lock in and take some notes. If you're married today, I want to ask you to maybe suspend whatever it is that you don't like or whatever bristles you up about whatever we talk about today, and would you just ask the Spirit of God to speak to you and to help you in your marriage?

If you're single or maybe you're widowed, I want you to know how you need to pray for and encourage the married folk in your life and the married people around you because the enemy wants to destroy. That's what we talked about last week. As we jump in today, what I want you to know is that God has a word for us. If we will embrace this truly, your marriage can grow stronger in time.

I heard about a young couple, Bryan and Sarah. They got married and started out great in marriage. They were optimistic, they were excited to be together, and they were in love. They wanted to have an incredibly satisfying and fulfilling marriage, but it didn't take very long before things began to sour a little bit. It seemed as if they fought constantly about every aspect of their lives.

There were the normal gender role questions about whose turn it was to cook and who should do the dishes and the laundry and who was to take care of the dogs. You pile on top of that that they both had high-stress jobs. They would come home from work each day exhausted and had little to give to one another, and it added to tension in their marriage.

Bryan, the husband, reacted to this tension and this power struggle that was going on by eventually just giving in. Rather than confronting problems or talking about what they were going through in their disagreements, he began to avoid them and he became passive to try to keep the peace. It didn't keep the peace. Over time, he and Sarah struggled on a deeper level as their intimacy and their connection began to fade and they began to drift further and further apart from one another.

You may feel like Bryan and Sarah in this moment. You can think that your marriage has eroded and it's not what it was. You hope that it was going to be this and maybe you get disillusioned or frustrated at your spouse and you think if they would have, or if she would have, or if he had, then it would be different. Wherever you are today, whether you feel like you're hanging on by a thread, you're separated, you're thinking about going different ways, or in the back of your mind you're like, "We're just roommates, this is how it is," I believe there's hope for you today.

No matter where you are, God wants you to be stronger together. He wants to build in you a marriage that lasts. But what I want you to hear today is that what we're going to talk about is an inconvenient truth. It's one that we bypass in our day and our feeling of enlightenment and empowerment and we misunderstand the intention of God's Word. If you want to be stronger together, if you want to build a marriage that lasts, we have to come back to what God has intended for this most important relationship with your spouse.

If you have your Bible, I want to invite you to open up to 1 Peter, chapter 3. We'll begin in verse one in just a minute. I want to encourage you that no matter where you are, God has a word for you in this. What we're going to talk about today isn't outdated. It's not caveman rhetoric. What we're going to do is look at the truth of God's Word. Even if you don't like it, you'll be okay, I promise. Even if you're uncomfortable with what we're going to talk about today or if you're like, "I don't know about that," if you can think about why that doesn't work for you, what I want to challenge you to do is look at the unchanging truth of God's Word.

Just in your spirit, say, "God, would you just speak truth into my life today?" We want to be a people who build our lives on the foundation of God's unchanging Word, and we want to trust the truth of His Word. We want to believe that walking by faith means we trust that God knows best, so we're going to follow His Word. To grow stronger together and to build a marriage that lasts, each spouse needs to know their role in marriage.

As a wife and as a husband, you have a specific role in your marriage that God has created you to fulfill and that God intends for you to fulfill. I want us to look in 1 Peter, chapter 3, beginning in verse one. It says this: "In the same way, you wives must accept the authority of your husbands. Then, even if some refuse to obey the Good News, the Gospel, your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over by observing your pure and reverent lives.

Don't be concerned with the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. This is how the holy women of old made themselves beautiful. They put their trust in God and they accepted the authority of their husbands. For instance, Sarah obeyed her husband Abraham and called him master. You are her daughters when you do what is right without fear for what your husbands might do."

To start out today, I want to talk to the ladies first. Make no mistake, fellows, I'm going to get to you in a minute. We're going to talk about this. I want to talk for just a minute about what this passage teaches about what it looks like for a wife and a husband to fulfill their roles in marriage. First, I want to talk to the ladies. The first thing that this passage says is, "Ladies, follow your man. Let him take the lead."

Two times in this passage, Peter uses the word 'accept'. Literally, to accept means that you choose to come under his leadership. This was an act of faith to the women of old and it's an act of faith to you now as a wife. God has given your husband the authority and the role to lead you in your marriage.

I know some of you are thinking, "Where's that door? I don't like this because you don't know my husband. You don't know my man. You don't know what he's done or what he's said." After all, in our culture today, aren't we told repeatedly that women and men are exactly the same and you're wrong if you believe anything different? Our culture right now cannot directly answer the question, "What is a woman?" So how are we going to take marriage advice from them?

We go back to the truth of what God's Word says. The Bible says that we are created equal in God's eyes. Men and women are equally valued, equally loved by God, and equally important in your marriage. But men and women are not given the same roles nor the same authority in marriage. It does matter what you do and what role you play in marriage. He is not saying women need to sit quiet and be over there because they're inferior. What he is saying is that as a wife, your role is to follow your husband.

You may be thinking, "Why in the world would I follow that man when I'm more capable?" Maybe you're the breadwinner, or he's passive, or you're more spiritually mature, he's lost your trust, or all he cares about is his work and his hobbies. I just have one reason for you: it's because it's God's design. God has all authority. Woven throughout Scripture, God has all authority.

God delegates His authority. You go read throughout Scripture. He delegates His authority to the government. Go try to do something that's outside the law. You have consequences. The government's role is to enforce the law and order of the land. In the church, He's delegated His authority to elders, to the spiritual leadership, and the spiritual leadership leads the church. In the same way in your marriage, He has delegated authority to the husband.

No matter the sphere, our responsibility for being under authority is to follow our authorities to the edge of where the authority would have you cross over and do something against or in contradiction to God's Word. That's the limits of where you follow that authority. As long as that authority doesn't lead you outside of God's Word, you follow it.

Ladies, here is what that means for your marriage. I get it. He may be sitting there playing a game or chasing a hobby or investing himself at work and staying home while you bring the kids to church. I get it. But God will hold your man accountable for how well he leads in your marriage. He's not holding you accountable for his choices. You're not responsible for his choices. But God does hold you accountable for how well you do what He's given to you and follow him.

I want to say a word to some of the ladies today. You may have a stronger personality, or your man's been passive or distant, and you've just taken charge. You've grabbed the bull by the horns because if he hasn't, then you've got to. That's quietly killing your man. So instead of taking over, instead of dominating him, help him. Even if you're the breadwinner or he's behind you spiritually, let him lead.

Peter said in this passage that if you're married to an unbeliever—now I would say to you, if you're engaged or dating and it's to someone who is an unbeliever, you need to just stop right there. You don't need to be together. You don't need to get married to someone who is not in the faith. But Peter says if you're already married, if you missed that memo, if you ended up being married to somebody who's not in the faith, he says even your conduct, your choosing to follow, to have a gentle and quiet spirit means that even if he's an unbeliever, your life can point him to Christ.

Practically, I think that means you can make the spiritual life as normal as possible. Be faithful in front of him. Reflect Christ. Don't grow impatient and take over. Ask him what he thinks about a verse that you just read or talk to him about what you're experiencing at church or what God's doing in your life or other spiritual things. Encourage him. Please, do not treat your man like another child in the family. He's not one of the kids, even though he may act like one sometimes.

But what if he makes a mistake or he fails? He will. You need to give him room to fail. You don't have to correct him. He knows. Every husband is bound to make a mistake every now and then. We all make mistakes and it happens. So, ladies, cut him some slack. Don't nag him. Don't try to change him. If he fails, let God fix him. He's better at it than you are. You pray for him and look at what God does in his heart through the power of a praying wife.

If that's a struggle in your marriage, it's something that according to God's Word you need to walk through. It may be, ladies, that if you struggle with that, if you're like, "Oh goodness, I've been doing that and hadn't even realized it," or you've been doing it and you don't care, whatever the case is, maybe you need to pull your man aside later on today and say to him, "I'm sorry. You're my leader. I'm going to follow you. I'm going to share what's on my heart, but I'm ultimately going to let you lead."

Ladies, I want to ask you this. Just in the mirror, between you and the Lord, are you following your man? Are you following your man? If you're not sure, ask your man later on today, "Am I letting you lead me?" Leave the results up to God. Trust God with your husband. This is the essence of faith, is taking God at His Word and looking at your circumstances. You're like, "Well, he's not going to, he has never, he's not whatever, he doesn't care." No, it's taking God at His Word and you walking faithfully in what God has revealed. It's not going to come naturally. It's not going to come easily. That's why the Spirit of God has to do this in you. But you have to choose to accept his leadership in your marriage. It's an act of faith and trust in the Lord when you say yes to God's Word, and God blesses that.

The second thing that this passage says, Peter says to the ladies today, is, "Ladies, honor and respect your man." Did you notice how Peter said your lives being pure and reverent and having a gentle and quiet spirit? I think that means you don't dishonor him. You don't belittle him. It's tempting to take the passive-aggressive shots at him or to get together with the girls and talk about how lazy and nasty and dirty or whatever he is, what he does wrong, or what he needs to fix.

But it's destructive to do that. Don't call your mom and go full out on what's driving you crazy. For heaven's sake, please don't post junk on social media about what husbands are supposed to do in their marriage. Your man knows who you're talking about, and so does everybody else. Instead, encourage him. Don't hang him out to dry with his weaknesses. You cover them. Don't go full blast mode on him at the ball field or family vacation or a church function. I know that snark is the new funny, but don't do it at the expense of your man.

Honor him to his face and honor him to your friends and before your kids and your parents and even his friends. Not only does that build him up, but it can change how you see your man as well. Another way you can honor your man is to talk to him instead of about him. Communicate with him. Tell him how you feel about him. Find positive things to celebrate about your husband. You may have to start with something simple.

"I am so thankful for the way that he breathes so consistently, especially when we go to sleep. The windows go out and they come back in, just one after another consistently all night long." Find something. Find something and think positively, celebrate with him, whatever it is. I've heard it said before that as a wife, you have way more power than you realize. You have the power to make your man feel like a king, or you have the power to make him feel like he has cancer. So speak life.

Another way you can honor your man is to realize that he struggles with temptation. The struggle with temptation has nothing to do with you, and it doesn't matter his age or season of life. In our culture, temptation is everywhere: pictures, videos, TVs, everywhere you turn around. Women out there who will try to snatch your man away. I think that means you need to be careful to take care of your man at home. He's going to be more likely to devote himself to you if he knows that you're devoted to him. If he's not being taken care of at home, I think it could be likely that he could follow that temptation all the way to his demise.

Go read the book of Proverbs. Temptation, the lure of seduction is everywhere around us. Take care of your man. In your marriage, you're to serve one another. If you read the book of the Song of Solomon, the entire book is about intimacy between a husband and a wife. So if you guys are struggling in your relationship in this area, start there. Read it together, help at home. You need to ensure that he's fulfilled at home to help prevent him from going somewhere else to find that.

Several years ago in a church that we were a part of, they did a survey and it was such a creative way to do a survey of different people in the church. They put these huge whiteboards out in the lobby and they put a Sharpie at the bottom of it. It was just this blank white piece of paper, and at the top of one it said, "I wish my wife knew..." Everybody was encouraged to stop by there and just write something that they wished that their spouse knew.

Here is what some of the fellows said, ladies: "I wish my wife knew how beautiful, how thankful, how awesome she is, how much I love her, how I would love to say I do all over again." Another one said, "I wish my wife knew that when I tell her that I love her or how beautiful she is, it's not okay to reply by rolling her eyes, sighing or saying, 'Yeah right.' She should just say thank you. It makes my day." Don't nag him. One man wrote in the survey, "I wish my wife knew I heard her the first time."

Another guy said, "I wish my wife knew how to hunt or that golf is not of the devil." I would say to you, one of the ways you can support your man is don't cage him up and keep him from spending time doing this. Now I get it, I've been guilty of this and still fight a battle with it, and maybe many of you do too, that at times men can take advantage of that. But God can handle that in his heart and his life. You don't have to. Talk to him about it. But rather than working against him or making him miserable every time he goes and does something, pray that God would fill him and God would take care of him. Turn him over to God. Celebrate his accomplishments. Tell him, "That's a really good buck you got this year. That's a really nice fish. You shot a great round of golf." Tell him how thankful you are so that when the next pandemic happens, since he knows how to hunt, you're going to be able to eat as a family. Find a way to celebrate. The power of a wife is amazing to build him up or to tear him down. If you treat your man like a king, he'll grab a water pistol and take on the gates of hell for you. Especially if you treat him like that when he blows it, when he makes a mistake.

Several years ago, I had this little boat. It was a duck hunting boat, just a little small aluminum boat with a little motor on the back of it. I started to fish a lot and so I was fishing out of this little bitty boat. We had moved back to Mississippi and I wasn't using it to duck hunt as much. I thought, "I need a bigger fishing boat." What I convinced myself of was that if we had a bigger fishing boat, I could take the whole family fishing with me. But really, I just wanted a bigger boat.

I searched and I found this boat and it was so pretty. It was even the right colors. It was maroon and it had this—it was just amazing. It was a really nice boat and I thought, "That's the kind of boat that I want." So I prayed about it and I was like, "Yes." I told Christie about it. We had a couple of conversations and I'm praying, "Lord, I just want to listen to You. I'm going to ask You even about this boat." Do you know what God said? He said no.

I kept praying. Prayed a little bit more. God still was saying no. So I did what you would have done. I went and I test-drove it and I got out on the water with it. Ultimately, as I'm praying, I'm just like, "Lord, I want to honor You in this." So I told the guy, I was like, "I'm not going to buy it right now." But a couple of weeks later, I sold my little boat that I had and I thought, "Well, I've got to get a boat now. I'm going to call that guy back." So I went and bought that boat that I know that the Lord had told me not to buy.

Christie and I had talked about it, and she just asked questions like, "Do you really need a boat that big? Is it wise to do that? Is that really what we need to do?" I think she just got to the point as she knew that God was telling me no, but I think she just got to the point and said, "Alright, Lord, You're going to have to handle this one." As soon as I got the boat, brought it back home, backed it up in our little gravel turn-around and started looking it over, it wasn't 30 minutes after we got back home that I realized I had missed a major issue with the motor that you couldn't see while you were running it. But there was one particular thing that was characteristic of this particular boat, and I missed it.

My heart sank. So I called the little boat dealership place nearest and I said, "Man, I've got a problem. I just bought this boat. I need you to come check it out. I think it's got this issue with it." So I took it to them and, guess what, a couple of weeks later I got it back but it cost me $1,800 to get the boat fixed before I had ever put it in the water. It turned to gravel in my mouth very quick.

So what I did is now that the boat was running perfect, I was like, "Alright, Lord, I'm going to listen to You." I sold it. I got rid of it. The guy is probably loving the boat and enjoying it to this day. But Christie knew that it was a mistake the whole time. She didn't fight me or she didn't shut down because she disagreed with me. She knew God was saying no and I was dancing around it. But do you know what she did when I found out that it was going to cost us $1,800 more just to put it in the water for the first time?

She didn't nag me. She didn't say, "I told you so." She could have. She could have told me I was stupid because I was. She could have chewed me up one side and down the other. She didn't say, "How could you? How could you have missed that part? How could you cost us this extra money?" She let God handle me, and He did.

Even when your man makes a mistake, ladies, how you respond matters so much. You have the power with your words and your response, especially when he blows it, to make a man feel like a king or like he has cancer. You can build him up or encourage him to be the man that God has called him to be, or you can tear him down. You can belittle him and second-guess him into misery, all by your words. Choose to honor and respect your man.

Ladies, he says there's an incredible responsibility that you have to come alongside and to follow the leadership of the man that God has placed in your life as your husband. But then Peter turns the page and he begins to talk to the fellows. So I want you to look real quick in 1 Peter, chapter 3, verse seven. He says this: "In the same way, you husbands must give honor to your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God's gift of new life. Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered."

There's a principle that you need to know, fellows. I want you to write this down. The principle that you need to know that Peter's wanting to communicate to us, if you don't remember anything else from today, it's this: as a man goes, so goes his marriage. As a man goes, so goes his marriage. This principle guides your role, fellows, in your marriage. The success of your marriage is on your shoulders. Yes, it's a lot of pressure. Yes, it's the reality of today. But it's what God has intended, but yet God wants to help you to walk in this role and for your marriage to be built to last.

I mentioned that survey just a minute ago, but here is what wives wrote on the board that said, "I wish my husband knew": "I wish my husband knew that I love him and I would marry him all over again. I wish my husband knew that I'm proud of him, he's my world, that he's enough for me. That my moods are hormonal and not personal, that I appreciate him, that I respect him, and that he's great and smart and I love him, he still takes my breath away." One wife wrote, "I wish my husband knew that he's all that and a bag of potato chips and he's my big piece of fried chicken."

So fellows, God has created you to be in this relationship with your wife, you big piece of fried chicken. He's created you to be with her and her to be with you. It's God's design. But in order for you to become this big piece of fried chicken, you've got to do what Peter says in 1 Peter, chapter 3, verse seven. By the way, please don't take this as a suggestion or some helpful advice from a marriage counselor or expert or some psychologist. This is a command from God in His Word.

You live with her in this way. Fellows, your wife needs a partner at home. Verse seven says, "In the same way, you husbands give honor to your wives, treat your wife with understanding as you live together." Give honor and treat your wife with understanding. Literally, what it says is to live according to knowledge. That means not that you know some textbook about women, it means that you know your wife. What makes her tick, what ticks her off, what makes her happy, what thrills her, how she works.

It's surprising to me, and I shouldn't be surprised because we probably all walk in this, but even after 20 years of marriage, there are still moments where I expect and think that Christie is going to see things and approach things just like I do. Make the same decision, think about things the same way. But there's a huge problem with that, and that's that she's not like me. Thank God for that. The fact that she thinks differently, acts differently, sees things differently than me is a blessing, not a curse. Remember that.

Your wife's well-being is greatly dependent upon you. She's very sensitive to your actions and your attitudes for good reason. You need to understand and accept this, but she is not you. To treat her with understanding, I think it means you take time to talk to your wife. You need to give her more than two or three words a day. You need to give her more than one conversation at the end of the week, an overview. You need to give her a detailed conversation about what's happening in your life. There's no such thing as the strong silent type. I think that's a cop-out. With your wife, she needs to hear from you and know you. You need to open your heart and let her into your life.

At home is where the rubber really meets the road. No matter what other people think about us outside of our houses, whenever our front door shuts, our wives know what's really behind it all. She knows the real you. From that survey, wives wrote this: "I wish my husband knew that when he says I love you but passes up the trash, I don't believe him. I wish my husband knew how to change the toilet paper roll or do the dishes or that the laundry doesn't pick itself up. I wish my husband knew that I appreciate it when he lets down the toilet seat or when he cooks dinner or I love that he takes care of things that girls can't, like changing light bulbs and killing bugs."

Live with your wife according to knowledge. Know her. Be a partner at home. Figure out what's important to her. Do you know her hopes and her fears and her dreams? Do you know her? She needs you to know her, to live according to knowledge with understanding. The second thing that Peter says in this to the fellows is this: "Fellows, you need to honor your wife. Honor and value your wife." We're all created in God's image and we would all agree with that. We would nod our heads and say yes, but that's not what our culture has been telling us for years. Our culture says not only are we created equal, we are completely exactly equal in all ways, but it's just not true.

When Peter says that she's weaker than you are, he's not talking about intellectually. That's not true at all. Many women are incredibly intelligent. He's not talking about emotionally. Women are actually better at sharing what's on their mind and their heart and communicating than men are. He's not even talking about morally or spiritually. Often there are more women than men at church and more women that choose to serve and be involved in the church than men are. Often women are further ahead of their men spiritually with the Lord. From the word that's used in the Greek, the way that it's constructed is to say you're weak, but she's weaker. He's talking about physical strength.

Peter's saying, fellows, you use your strength to cover, to honor, to value, to protect her. Not to put her down, but to encourage and honor your wife. Some of the ways that women in that survey said that as husbands we could honor our wives: the first one was, "Pay attention to me. Take care of me." Having a conversation with them while you're watching ESPN, Fox News, or working on the computer or playing on your phone doesn't count. "Respect me." I think you need to let them know that you truly care. She is your companion. "Date me." Do you remember the excitement of when you're dating? When it was just so exciting, you'd go out to eat and you'd do different things? She remembers it too. So look for opportunities to capture that again. Take her out to a picnic or to a restaurant or ride to Walmart together and leave the kids behind for a little bit. Spend time with her.

They also said, "Encourage me." Give her compliments and encouragement. Guys, we can joke around with each other and we can cut on each other pretty good and haze each other good in a conversation, but don't do that with your wife. "Value me." She needs to know that she's more important than your work, than your buddies, your hobby, or even your career path. Show her affection. Hold her hand, give her a hug for no reason. They said, "Appreciate me." Recognize the sacrifices that your wife makes for you. "Call me, send me a text." That tells her, "Hey, you're on my mind for no reason, just to say hello in the middle of the day." They said, "Forgive me." If she messes up, let it go. Sometimes things from the past that we hold on to create friction in our marriage. And they said, "Miss me." Absence makes the heart grow fonder. Those are just some practical ways that wives say that as husbands we can value and honor them. You need to be intentional to do that.

But the last thing that Peter says in this passage, which is the overarching theme and it is, fellows, the most important thing that if you get this right, the other pieces will begin to fall into place. The last thing that Peter says is, "Fellows, take the lead spiritually." Take the lead spiritually. She needs you to be the spiritual leader. Peter gives a command that you do all of these things so that your prayers will not be hindered. He's speaking to the husband. Both of you pray, but he's saying, "Hey fellows, when you're praying, you're taking the lead and you need to recognize that if you ignore this, if you abdicate your responsibility to lead, if you don't value and honor your wife, if you're not a partner with her, if you're not living with understanding, God says guess what? You're talking to the wall."

The word 'hindered' is this idea of an obstacle, a barricade being placed in the road, a military function that would stop an advancing army from moving. God says that's what I'm going to do to you if you're not paying attention to, loving, and leading your wife well. The man is the spiritual leader of the marriage. Lead your wife spiritually.

A great start is taking her to church, but that's not the only thing that he's talking about here. You need to do that, but you need to be here with her. Don't talk a big game about your faith and be off hunting or fishing or playing golf every Sunday while your wife brings the kids to church. By your example, you set the spiritual tone of your home. And it's your responsibility. Peter says, "Hey, have it your way if you don't want to do that, fellows, guess what? God's not listening to your prayers."

Remember: as a man goes, so goes his marriage. The way the Bible describes us is, fellows, we are the thermostat of our homes. You know what a thermostat does? A thermostat determines the temperature. You set the tone, you set the temperature, you set the trajectory of your home. You're not simply a thermometer telling or recognizing what the temperature is. You're setting the temperature. That's what God has called you to do is you set the tone. You may have to start with baby steps if you've never done that before. This is the first time you've heard this, or maybe you and your wife have been at odds, but don't let where you are keep you from going where God wants to lead you.

Now, ladies, I would say to you, be patient with your man. If he walks out of this morning and says, "Man, I really need to figure out how to lead you," be patient with him as he learns. The truth is, most of us have not seen spiritual leadership modeled for us. We didn't necessarily grow up with a great example of what it looks like to be led spiritually in that role. So you'll have to work and it'll take some time, but be patient with him.

Fellows, if you've not led up to this point, your wife has been the leader, you've been sitting on the couch playing a video game or chasing a hobby or working and abdicating that role, it's going to be hard to go in there and grab the reins when you haven't done anything in a long time. So you need to start with baby steps. Take small steps to reestablish trust and to begin to lead. Where do you start with that? I think the first thing you need to do is follow Jesus Christ yourself.

You need to begin to say, "You know what, Lord, I want Your way in my life," that begins with receiving Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sin. Asking Him to make you right before God by faith and beginning to walk in that yourself. Let nothing slow you down, fellows, from walking in step with the Lord and following Jesus in your own life. You've got to love Jesus first. You can't love your mate and lead your family like God has intended you to do until you love God and are loved by God in a relationship with Him through Jesus Christ.

You can't take them somewhere that you've never been. But God invites you today. Fellows, He's inviting us today. No matter where you've been, that's the message of grace and hope as He invites you. You can walk in this. You can experience God's blessing in your marriage. Ladies, no matter how awry it is right now, the message of grace and hope is for you today as well. God promises to strengthen your relationship, to build a marriage that lasts, when you build it upon God's Word. It may be hard work to get there. It will be hard work to get there. But God invites you with His power and His strength to experience that today. He invites you to rely on His strength, the strength of His Holy Spirit. For the most important relationship in your life outside of your relationship with the Lord, He wants you to experience your marriage as the greatest blessing that you have outside of Jesus Christ. He wants you to trust Him today. Let's pray together.