Love Dare Day 21

Well, I am past the halfway point!  Whew!  I think I really went into this more with the attitude that me doing all these "things" would cause Frank to take a look at himself and make some changes.  (yes, you can laugh now!)  But, what I found instead was that this process has caused me to take an inward look and be the one that made some changes instead!

For a long time in my marriage, I looked to Frank as my source of happiness.  If he came home in a good mood, then typically our evening was great.  If he wasn't, then I wasn't either.  If he answered me with a wrong attitude, I answered back in an equally (sometimes more) ugly attitude.  My attitude was SO dependant on his.  Even now, I find myself slipping back into that old pattern of behavior sometimes.

What unneeded and unnecessary pressure that was from me!!!  I looked to him as the source of my happiness, my love, my security.  No wonder things fell apart!

Everyday, whether we mean to or not, we place certain expectations on our spouse.  And because they are human, they don't always meet them.  But even if they do most of the time, they will never be able to fully satisfy all of the demands we have.  Partly because some are unreasonable (I never make unreasonable demands.  I mainly meant yall!) and partly because they are just people.  

Thankfully, our God isn't.  And when we approach Him daily for our needs, we see just how dependable He is.

Can Frank give me inner peace?  Can he enable me to be content in all things?  Most definitely the answer is NO.  But God can.  Philippians 4:12-13 tell us In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled... I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.  And if anyone had just cause NOT to be satisfied... it was Paul,  FOR SURE!

We all have needs that only God can fill, that only He can satisfy.  Even though our spouse may be able to fill some of them every once in a while, only God can do it all... all the time.  Our need for love, for acceptance, for true happiness.  We have to quit looking to things and others that are subject to change-- like health, our MONEY, even our spouse-- to bring us real satisfaction.

If we know this, why is it that we don't always do it?  Well, we don't really trust God to supply our needs.  It's easy to say until you're in the thick of it.  Then, sometimes we think about that trust or meeting of needs as something God did for others, but not for us.  After all, our situation is always different!

My challenge for today is BE INTENTIONAL ABOUT MAKING A TIME TO PRAY AND READ YOUR BIBLE.  THIS WILL ADD TO YOUR GROWTH AS YOU WALK WITH HIM.

I do this every morning already.  After I get the kids up and dressed and they are eating breakfast I get started. I usually use this time to do whatever Bible Study I'm in and then  Frank usually takes the boys outside to wait for the bus with Jackson. So for about 15 minutes it's really quiet inside and I can have my prayer time.  Having a quiet time every day I can honestly say has made the biggest impact in my walk.  If you don't already have one, it's not too late to start.  Start with whatever time you have.  If it's just 10 minutes then start there.  You will be amazed at how you will start carving out more time on your own.

Is God your everyday supply?  Honestly?  Of everything?