Here we are, Lord; two fluffy, male-and-female married-to-each-other sheep in Your flock, so thankful to have You as our Good Shepherd! We’re taking hold of and holding You to the promises given to Your shepherd-king David in Psalm 23, but here, for our marriage.
You made sure we knew right off the bat that with You as our shepherd, we have everything we need; we do not lack in any area of our marriage (hard to fathom and easy to forget). Then You put a finer point on exactly what that means for us, knowing how wayward, wandering, needy, and dependent we are as individuals; our marriage has the same tendencies, needs, and dependence too.
Your leading takes our marriage to a place of true rest and security, vibrant, lush, and full of life. You draw us two-as-one to the refreshing peace and stillness of Your living water in us and all around us. Our intertwined roots grow in You as a single tree, planted by and roots reaching deep into Your nourishing stream. You meet our natural needs, our emotional needs, our spiritual needs and in so doing, the physical, heartfelt, and spiritual aspects of our marriage are refreshed. Outsides replenished, insides restored.
We each entered into a personal covenant with You when we accepted Your rescue and salvation for our lives; in this covenant we are made righteous in Your eyes. Now, our marriage is a covenant between us as man and wife which comes under covenant with You; Your righteousness gives our marriage the rightness to stand next to You. No matter how good or kind or serving we are to You or each other, it is only Your exalted name and honor that leads our marriage in the right paths of right-standing with You.
Lord, You’ve seen us, You know us, You’ve been alongside since we said I do. You’re well aware of the dark and deathly moments we’ve endured (which likely won’t be the last). These times and places feel the lowest of low, like being surrounded by stormy mountains on every side, the I-can’t-take-this, will-this-ever-end always lurking… sometimes it’s in our relationship with each other, or the literal death of dear ones or something of value; of astonishing disappointments, or of hopes, dreams, and plans that get crushed. But it’s Your faithful presence that always gets us through… and it is a ‘through’, not a dwelling place; no permanent structures allowed in this valley because dark times are always changing (just like lighter times), seasons that come and go. You’re not only a Shepherd for the day shift but for the night too, so we’re not afraid of what these times look like or how they make us feel as You are always with us, always with a do not fear, dear ones. Your strength and Your hope hold us tight and Your never-leaving never-forsaking promise we hold as true for whatever else we face—together, with You.
The way You protect and the way You lead is comfort and reassurance for our relationship. You know that sheep can’t rest or amble peacefully when they’re not secure so we rely on the wisdom of Your best ways for our guarding and guiding in this union. Almost never is our marriage attacked by lions, wolves, or bears, but so many other beasts try to encroach on it, to steal, kill, and destroy in various forms: time, employment, indifference, kids, family, hobbies, sports, church, depression, addiction, health, finances, screens of all kinds, worry, anxiety, overcommitment, communication issues, and the sparkly glitters of the world. We need You in our marriage, God, to make the way through and around and over these hard hard things that pull us away from each other and away from You. It’s reassuring that if we wander even a bit, we can come to You knowing how protective, fierce, and watchful You are over the covenant of marriage You established and that OUR marriage matters to You immensely!
Yet it is in the darkness and the doubt and the onslaught of the enemy beasts and the relentless accusations of our common enemy, Satan, where You prepare a table for us. In You, where we live and move and have our being, our marriage is secure enough to sit down in plain sight of all that is going on around us, where we can feed on Your faithfulness no matter what. We need the togetherness, the shared time, the intimacy that gathering around a table sharing physical and spiritual food offers us. We thrive on Your sustenance!
You’ve covered and anointed our marriage with the oil of Your Holy presence; it is also covered under the headship of You: the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. This is the protection, hierarchy, and authority that we choose for all areas of our marriage. We love You, God, and we love each other. The fullness and hope and brightness of our days together we center around You, otherwise there would be an unfillable emptiness. We are thankful You brought us together, to be able to share You and the abundant life you prepared for this little coupleship.
You pour, pour, pour to overflowing into both of our lives; Your life in us continuously spills out, to each other and everyone else Your good-works-plans put in our path. In this path of life You’ve established for our marriage, we desire to pursue what pleases You, God, that as a couple we would walk worthy of You and together with You to be producers of every kind of good fruit. We’re overwhelmed by Your goodness, mercy, and unfailing love pursuing and following the steps and days of our journey as we head hand-in-hand on the Heaven Road to our maintenance-free forever-house with You, God.
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image by mehdi genest on unsplash