This man loves me!

My husband and I have been through a lot in our seventeen years of marriage.  I have watched him grow and mature in so many ways.  It was a process.  It still is a process.  Obviously, neither one of us is perfect.  We are learning to be more like our Lord Jesus Christ every day that we live.  The things I will list in this post are from my heart.  I am thankful to God for his work of grace in the heart of my husband.  It is something to praise him for.

One major aspect of any marriage is learning to love your spouse selflessly.  What is it that ooozes out of us on a day to day basis?  Do we have a willingness to meet needs?  How do we respond when a need arises?  Sometimes the needs of our spouse encroach upon our plans.  There will be times where we have to put our own desires on hold in order to help our spouse accomplish what they have to do.  It will go both ways.  It is not always easy either.

Today I want to honor my husband by sharing with you some things he has done that have meant a lot to me.  He's not the type to buy me flowers and chocolate or concoct elaborate plans to surprise and amaze me.  But that's ok.  I really am ok with that.  He loves me deeply.  And he is a man who is willing to humble himself and seek forgiveness when he is wrong.  He is also a man who does everything he can to ensure that I never feel like I don't have his heart or his time.  I love this man!!!  He shows his love for me, my children and others every day.  Here are some of the ways...

~He is willing to run to Walmart if I need something, no matter what time of day and no matter how tired he is.  Of course, I speak of legitimate needs. ;)

~He sees a need and meets it.  Last night he washed the dishes without being asked.

~He values my input.  This morning he sat next to me while I was putting on my makeup.  He folded laundry while he shared some of his thoughts on the Bible passage he is studying, Matthew 5.  He appreciates hearing my thoughts as well.  I love our conversations about God!

~He made sure that I had everything I needed yesterday (Thanksgiving).  I was sick and Clara was too, so we were not able to attend the church's Thanksgiving meal.  He made sure to check on me and to bring me a plateful of delicious food and some pie as well!

~We have one laptop, and even though he often has things that he needs to accomplish with it, he generously gives me time to write because he knows that it is important to me, and it is important to him as well.

~He loves people.  He cares about them and he listens to them.  He has a desire to help others turn to God in every situation.

~He longs to go on dates with me and I am glad to do so. ;)

~He fixes me breakfast if I am having a super busy morning.

~He takes care of Izzy when I am tired.  Sometimes he'll get up, he'll fix the bottle or change the diaper and let me rest.  Acts of love like this make me want to serve him even more.

My advice to every husband and wife is to just start serving and seeking to be selfless and Christ-like in your marriage.  God will use you for his glory and your example will often encourage your spouse to do more because they see how much you love them in very practical ways.  Spend less time complaining about what they are not doing and more time praying and asking God what you can do to love your spouse.

What ways can you go the extra mile to show your spouse how much you love them? 

Maybe you are struggling right now...what ways can you go the extra mile to show your love for God in the way that you treat your spouse?  

God showed his love to us while we were still sinners.  Can we love like that?  

By his grace, we can.  And because of the extravagant way that God has loved us, we should.