Originally published Friday, 22 May 2015.
Marriage is a gift – an amazing blessing from God. Yet often, the greatest gifts in life are not always cherished the way they should be. Maybe because life gets busy, or we get hurried and distracted. Maybe because we start to take one another for granted. Or we disagree and let resentments hang on longer than they should.
Life gets hard.
The baggage we bring along from our past doesn’t help much either. What worked for us as two individuals, coping with the everyday stresses of life, may not work so well when joined as “one.” We spin our wheels comparing our own marriage to the next one over, complaining about the problems; falsely thinking it might propel the other to action. We long for brighter tomorrows, but instead get stuck, in regret and hurt. We begin to drift away. And sadly, many times, we start looking for the nearest door marked “Exit.”
There’s a battle over marriages today, and the enemy would love nothing more than to destroy yours, and to bring.you.down.
Don't let him win.
The enemy's aim – to destroy. God’s aim – to build up.
In all of the talk about marriage, defending our views, or pointing out differences, we have to ask ourselves one question...have we prayed? I mean, really prayed, consistently, over time? And if we’re not, then who is?
God promises in Isaiah 55:11 that His word will not return empty, without accomplishing great things.
There’s no magic formula in praying verses and words, but there is power through the Spirit of God. And there’s power in His Truth to bring forgiveness, healing, renewal, and restoration - no matter how bad things may seem. His reach is big. His love is huge. His grace covers all.
Prayer + God’s Word = Power – the pathway for Him to do miraculous things.
40 Powerful Wedding and Marriage Blessings to Pray Over Your Spouse:
Dear God,
We praise you for your love and faithfulness. We thank you for huge grace. We thank you that you give us the power to love well. Thank you for my spouse. Thank you for the gift of marriage. Thank you that you’re for us; that you fight for us. Thank you that you are Redeemer, and you have good in store. We confess, some days, marriage gets tough, and we blow it – again. We ask that you would make us more like you. Please fill our marriage and lives with truth and cover it with blessing.
Lord, we pray for…
Adoration - “My beloved is mine and I am his.” Song of Songs 2:16
Belief – "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved-you and your household." Acts 16:31
Blessing - “He blesses the home of the righteous.” Prov. 3:33
Commitment - "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." Ecc. 4:12
Courage - “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Josh. 1:9
Discernment - “And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.” Phil. 1:9-10
Encouragement - “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” Ephesians 4:29
Endurance – “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” 1 Cor. 13:7-8
Faithfulness - “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.” Prov. 3:3-4
Favor - “May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us, establish the work of our hands…” Ps. 90:17
Forgiveness - “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Eph. 4:32
Friendship – “Two are better than one…if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion.” Ecc. 4:9-10
Fruitfulness - “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Gal. 5:22-23
Generosity - “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” Prov. 11:25
Gentleness – “Walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Eph. 4:1-3
Grace - “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Col. 4:6
Health - “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” Prov. 16:24
Hope - “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you hope and a future.” Jer. 29:11
Humility - “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Phil. 2:3-4
Integrity – “Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.” Prov. 10:9
Intimacy - “Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” 1 Cor. 7:5
Joy - “May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth.” Prov. 5:18
Kindness – “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.” Prov. 31:26
Love - “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other…” 1Thess. 3:12
Oneness - “They are no longer two but one flesh. What God has joined together, let no man separate.” Matt. 19:6
Peace - “May there be peace within your walls…” Ps. 122:7
Protection – “The Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.” 2 Thess. 3:3
Provision - “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” Phil. 4:19
Purity - “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” Ps. 19:14
Purpose – “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Rom. 8:28
Respect - “Let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.” Eph. 5:33
Self-Control – “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” 2 Tim. 1:7
Servant-Hearted - “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." Josh. 24:15
Strength - “The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace.” Ps. 29:11
Submission - “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Eph. 5:21
Thankfulness - “Pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thess. 5:17-18
Trust - “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” 1 John 4:18
Understanding – “Husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way…” 1 Peter 3:7
Value - “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.” Prov. 31:10
Wisdom - “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Prov. 4:23
Let your favor shine on us as we seek after you.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
You may also want to read our prayer to use during a wedding ceremony: A Prayer to Pray At Weddings
Debbie McDaniel is a writer, pastor's wife, mom to three amazing kids (and a lot of pets). Join her each morning on Fresh Day Ahead's facebook page, DebbieWebbMcDaniel, for daily encouragement in living strong, free, hope-filled lives.
Find her also at Web Site and Twitter.
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