Marriage

God’s model marriage calls for sacrificial love, great patience and deep courage of heart. Becoming one as the Bible describes requires some ‘open heart surgery’. We must allow Him to change our hearts so that we love others selflessly, and trust Him to transform both husband and wife into His image. It requires that we seek God for all our ways and trust Him to guide us through all our ups and downs. Our marriages become unshakeable when God holds us together with one heart.

(See Chinese versions: 简体中文 > 婚姻 | 繁體中文 > 婚姻)

Genesis 2:24 ESV  Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

A prayer for our marriages

“Dear Heavenly Father,

We surrender our marriage to You. We acknowledge that our marriage is a holy covenant, much like the one You made with the church. Help us to honour You by joyfully honouring our marriage covenant.

Mark 10:8-9 ESV  And the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Ephesians 5:29 ESV For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church.

We commit to praying for our marriage every day, knowing that love is not enough! On a day-by-day basis, we both need to choose humility, patience, kindness, faithfulness, perseverance, and self-control. We both need to be more dedicated to You than to each other or our own comfort.

Galatians 5:22-23 ESV But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Teach us to use our words to build each other up, and not to tear each other apart. Help us to speak the truth in love, at the most appropriate time that You have provided. Lord, help us to be patient and kind to each other.

Please bring us men and women who can counsel us with discretion and godly wisdom on what godly marriage is.

Titus 2:6-8 ESV  Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech…

Titus 2:3-5 ESV  Older women likewise … train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.

Forgive us for the times we have thought of separating from each other, whether legally, sexually or emotionally. Teach us how to treasure and protect our intimacy. Please convict our hearts whenever we are tempted to be independent of each other. 

1 Corinthians 11:11 ESV  Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman;

May our marriage bed be sacred. Help us flee from sexual temptation. 

1 Corinthians 7:2 ESV But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband.

Thank you for taking care of our household, we trust You for all our provisions and needs. Lord, there are things that add a lot of pressure on our marriage, including our children, finances, families, friends, tragedies, domestic chores etc. Father, You are in control of this universe – as well as our personal affairs. So we release them all to You. Teach us to respond to each challenge in a way that delights You.

Matthew 6:26-27 ESV   Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?

May our marriage and home be like a light on a hill that cannot be hidden. Make ours a model marriage that provides hope in a world where such marriages are becoming more and more rare.

Matthew 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.

We rebuke Satan for constantly trying to steal our marriage love, joy and peace. We declare in Jesus’ name, that all weapons formed against our marriage will not prosper, that You will protect us in our comings and goings, and keep us from evil. 

Isaiah 54:17 ESV no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD.” 

Psalm 121:7-8 ESV The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

Heavenly Father, guide us both to make prayer a priority in our lives. Our time before You is sacred. Thank You for refreshing, comforting, and renewing us each day of our lives together. We will praise You til the day we see You face to face.

In Jesus’ name, amen!”