Challenge #11

I hope you were able to let your spouse relax for our last challenge. Do your best not to make your home a place of added stress during off time. Everyone wants a break every now and then - trust me, that "to do" list isn't going anywhere! :-)

Several years ago we went on a Weekend to Remember and just the other night we were sharing our memories about the trip. We both remember things getting off to a rocky start because we were in an argument, the topic of which neither of us remembered. It was very interesting to hear about what stood out to each of us during this trip and I'm going to share one thing that we each clearly remembered.

The Weekend to Remember is a couples event and sometime during the trip, we were broken up into small groups. In our group was a couple much, much older than us. They briefly introduced themselves and told us their story. They were there as a last resort before divorce. They had raised several children who were now grown and out of the house. During that time of "the busyness of life" (a term I'll use often), they grew far apart. Now that the kids were gone, they did not know how to relate to eachother - their marriage was cold and distant.

I distinctly remember a loud blaring alarm going off in my mind: DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOU!!!
I'm sharing this story with you because I don't want it to happen to you.
Having four children, we always find ourselves busy doing one thing or another. It is very difficult to remember to put your spouse first when it seems that someone else is constantly pulling you in a different direction with their wants and needs, things which you attempt to fulfill as part of your parenting efforts.

I'm not suggesting that you should be bad parents if you have children. I'm simply reminding you that your spouse comes first. Husbands and wives, let's be honest with ourselves here. If you are a parent, how many times have you seen your spouse being attentive to your child(ren) and wished that he or she was that attentive to you? I know I have!

 Today's challenge is to put your spouse first on your list of priorities. This is something one or both of you may be seriously in need of. You know your spouse best, so I can't tell you the best way for you to demonstrate this. However you want to do it, in a way that they will recognize it: show them they are first today. Remember: children grow up. They move out and they move on with their lives. When this inevitably happens, don't be left with distance and brokeness in your marriage. Put forth every effort possible to show your spouse that he or she is in their rightful place in your life: first (amongst men, not before God).