A Wife Who Prays

The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. James 5:16b

I thought she was crazy, or maybe just eccentric. As this older woman put her arms around me she pulled me into a hug as she whispered into my ear, “The Lord is gonna use you. He has great plans for your life.”

This was over fifteen years ago in a Bible Study I was attending. I had never met this woman but she had started a conversation with me because she thought I looked sad or pensive. We had a brief conversation about my health and then hers and I agreed to stop by her house sometime to drop off a remedy I had told her about.

At the time I had no idea what an influence she would have on my marriage. In fact, it wasn’t until this past weekend at a marriage retreat that I remembered the words she spoke to me when I made that visit.  It was our only visit before she moved away.

I had not had much experience with people who let the Holy Spirit rule their lives before her. She was willing to say and do whatever God led her to – and she believed He was telling her to speak to me. I was all ears.

Do you pray for your marriage? I did but she gave me specifics. Pray that you will love him and be kind to him. Pray that you will be available when he needs you, that you will be his helper. I began to pray.

Do you pray when you have sex. Honestly now, I had never thought that God would be too interested in our sex life. She assured me I was wrong, that I should invite God to be  part of even this most intimate part of our lives. I added this to my prayers.

Do you pray for your husband’s success in his workplace? Pray that he will have wisdom for his work and grace for the people he works with. Pray for God to bless him in that place. I started praying differently for my husband.

It was a long time ago so I am not giving you her exact words. What I clearly heard from her that day was that the way I treated my marriage and my husband would have a profound impact on all areas of my life, including ministry. She led me to understand that if things were right at home God could and would use me in other places. I knew that she was speaking truth.

Many years later I still follow her advice and pray for my husband and marriage – every aspect of it. God has blessed us. I was reminded of this at the marriage retreat we went on with our small group from our church. We enjoyed the teaching times and the alone times wandering around the property or just sitting in a swing together at the retreat center (TimberTops Retreat Center, Newfoundland, PA)  but what really struck me was how far we have come in those years as I followed the advice of someone I barely knew, someone God had sent to speak truth into my life.

I hope that as you read this you, too, would hear her wise, Godly woman advice. Do you pray that you will love and serve your husband? Do you pray for God to grow your love for each other and for Him? Do you pray for God to be a part of even the most intimate moments in your marriage?

Prayer is a powerful form of seeking God’s assistance and blessings in our marriages. One woman speaking what God had given her for me about the importance of marriage and prayer was all it took to spur me to start and I now see the fruit of years of prayer.  Jesus said, “ Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:24) Is it time we all started asking?