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This is a movie about one of the wise men who had been studying Scripture in anticipation of the coming of the Lord. He and his cohorts realized that the time had come, and set out to seek the Lord. This fourth wise man was separated from the group and the movie is about his journey in seeking the Lord. To me, it is a reflection of how we can seek the Lord in our everyday lives. I highly recommend it. It can be seen on YouTube at this link
As I said last week, the most important thing a couple can do is to keep God in the center of their marriage, a third partner in the relationship. In Ecclesiastes 4:12, the Bible tells us that "though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." (from www.tasseldepot.com) "The cord of three strands represents God, the groom, and the bride - braiding these three strands symbolizes the joining of one man, one woman, and God in marriage." In Proverbs 3:6 the Scripture says in essence: In everything you do, put God first and He will direct your paths and crown your efforts with success.
I don’t know where you are in your relationship concerning God’s order of things, but if you are out of order and want your relationship to work better you might consider working together with God to reorient your relationship.
Wives, do your best to respect your husbands and their position in your relationship because when men are respected, they feel loved and are more likely to love you in the way you can receive.
Husbands, it takes a man strong in the Lord to lead his family, love his family, and put their needs above his own. When you can love your wife with God’s definition of love (1 Corinthians 13), she will feel loved and be more likely to respect you.
Doing our best to follow God's instructions about marriage, John and I were both delivered from any preconceived notions about each of our roles in marriage. We were given the freedom to work in each of our strengths. Consequently, each of us was free to be our best selves - who God created us to be. Our marriage was above and beyond anything I could have imagined. I pray that all of my readers could experience the same in their relationships.
As I conclude this post, I encourage everyone to embrace the Greatest Commandment. In Matthew 22: 37-40, Jesus explains the bottom line.
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
And in Galatians 5:22-23 we are given a picture of what love in action looks like. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
God bless you
During this week of Thanksgiving, I am completing my posts about the transformative power of thanksgiving, by sharing more from Lisa Appelo's book, "Life Can Be Good Again."
Lisa Appelo has identified six ways in which thankfulness transforms our lives. (pp. 113-115)
1. “Gratitude helps us see God’s hand and opens our spiritual eyes…we can sense His presence, His personal care, and His perfect timing.”
“Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights.” (James 1: 16-17 ESV)
2. “Gratitude draws us to God….Seeing God’s kindness to us day in and day out softens our heart and woos us to Him.”
In reference to Jesus healing the 10 lepers and only one returning to give thanks, in Luke 17:19 Jesus said to him, “Get up and go. Your faith has healed you.” (Luke 17:17 CEB)
3. “Gratitude helps us trade worry for peace.”
“Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks. Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7 CEB)
4. “Gratitude deepens our faith.” In preparation for David to kill Goliath, he reviewed how God had helped him in the past. In 1 Samuel 17:36, David said, “Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear, and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them since he has defied the armies of the living God.” (NASB) As we recall the times God has interceded in our lives, it encourages us to go forward with courage, knowing that if He did it before, He will do it again. We can rest in His promises to help us overcome all the Goliaths in our lives.
5. “Gratitude gives joy….Gratitude opens our eyes to the countless blessings in our life and helps us appreciate the ordinary beauty we would otherwise pass by.”
“The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.” Psalm 126:3
6. “Gratitude silences Satan’s lies. Satan knows the power of gratitude for us and would love nothing more than to keep us ungrateful…by whispers that God is keeping good from us. We see instead that God is an abundant God who gives lavishly to us.”
“If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him.: Matthew 7:11
I hope you were blessed by this series on the transformative power of thanksgiving. May you and your families have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving season.
