Love Dare - Day 11: Love Cherishes

Sorry this is up so late today, crazy morning and had to get to Bible Study on time ... ya know I cannot miss me some Beth Moore. She is my PBFF, after all;)

So, how did yesterday go? Did ya do something wonderful for you spouse? I made my man a special dinner, not the one that I had planned to make though. See, he LOVES shepherds pie. LOVES it. So, I was going to make it for him, cause that is the kinda wife I am. I was gonna carb myself into a coma just to please my love. Unfortunately, there was not a single potato in this house with which to make the mashed potato topping. SIGH ... So, I changed up the plan and made the last dinner that I could remember him raving about - the famous crock-pot-baked-spaghetti-chicken-parmesean-wanna-be-dinner. And, this time, NO FIRES!!! Good times!! I also planned to make him some blueberry muffins. 'Cause in my mans heart it goes God, me, his children and blueberries. Seriously, he loves 'em that much. BUT, due to the fact that I have a hurricane and a cyclone blowing through my house every single day, I did not get that done. However, he came home after stopping at the store, carrying a bag of potatoes. Hello! Can anyone say second chance? Tonight, Shepherds pie with blueberry muffin dessert. YAY!!!!!

Now, on to today ...

"Husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies." Ephesians 5:28

OK, if you have an car that keeps breaking down, 'causing you to pour money into it hand over foot, coming to the point that there is a choice to make. Either you replace the engine or you call it a day and start looking for a new car. What would you do? If you are like us, you would donate that ford windstar with over 200,000 miles on it and the engine light that has been on for three years and you go shopping for a new one. Just makes sense, right?

Now, let's say that you break your leg. The doctor says that you can do one of two things, place it in a cast, stay off of it for 6 weeks or so, get some physical therapy and hope that it is good as new when it is all said and done, OR, you can cut it off and move on with your life. What do ya do now? I am willing to bet you would do the cast, rest and therapy. Right?

So, your marriage, if it started falling apart, which category would IT fall under? How far would you go to make sure that your marriage is strong and lasting?

In this culture, sadly, there are too many people who would treat the marriage like the car. Throw it away and look for a new one. That breaks my heart. Marriage was meant to be lasting, til death do you part. Death, not annoyance. Your spouse is supposed to be a PART of you. Two become one, they are like one flesh, etc... It is not meant to just give up on. We are to look at our partner as part of our own body. Like the leg that was broken. And most people would not just give up on a part of their own body, now would they?

So, what about you? How do you look at your marriage?

When Hubbs and I got married, we did what was called a "Covenant Marriage". I do not know if that is an option in every state but in Arizona it was either a marriage licence or a Covenant Marriage licence. The difference being this, the Covenant Licence is hard to break. You cannot just file for divorce, you have to give legal reasoning behind your choice, and there are very few circumstance that it would be granted under. So, we can not just decide we are not happy and call it irreconcilable differences. We would have to prove IN COURT, that the other party either abandoned us, was unfaithful, was abusive or had an illegal addiction. Seriously, we would have to prove it in court to be granted a divorce. And I think that THAT is just what God had in mind when he created marriage in the first place.

Now, here is the question of the day. Do you cherish your spouse like your own body? Would you go to the ends of the earth to let them KNOW that you are that committed? I am praying that , if you don't now, you will by the end of this dare.

Today's Dare

What need does your spouse have that you could meet today? Can you run an errand? Give a back rub or foot massage? Is there housework you could help with? Choose a gesture that says "I cherish you" and do it with a smile.

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I hope that you are up for this. remember, it is not a chore, it is a privilege to love your spouse. Have fun with it!!!

See ya tomorrow!