Several months ago I (Kevin) wrote a post on 10 things to pray for your wife. I’m finally getting around to complete those thoughts with a list of prayer items for your husband. For the wife I followed closely to the Proverbs 31 passage, not wanting to assume I know what I wife would need. However for the husband I took liberties. Here are things I would like my wife to ask God these things for me.

1. Grant him more than enough income to provide for your family.
2. Give him success in all that he puts his hands to.
3. Recharge him at home more than at work or play.
4. Help him develop friendships with other men that would encourage, validate, bless, and focus him on who God says he is.
5. May he will see you as his helpmate and may you be his best friend, supporter, and lover.
6. Make your image the model of beauty for him. (This is a concept I got from Gary Thomas' book, Sacred Marriage)
7. Help him to know that you believe in him, trust his decisions for the family, and are proud of what he is able to accomplish at work.
8. May we take every opportunity to bless each other and allow the Holy Spirit to be the one to convict of sin.
9. Allow him to truly enjoy time with Jesus and look to Him for direction and life to give to the family.
10. Open his eyes to God’s plan for his life. The plan he was created for and would stir up energy and passion in him.

Additional resources:

• The Power of a Prayer Wife by Stormie Omartian

Gary Thomas is becoming a quick favorite in the Christian community with his series of books. I just recently finished leading a group at my church through a study of the his Sacred Marriage book and would encourage it to you. In a society that views life from the filter of what is in it for me, Thomas lays out a thesis in the Sacred Marriage that marriage is about making you holy. This book should challenge your thinking and redouble your efforts to work on your marriage. There is a choosing to follow God with your marriage; you cannot just let it come on its own.

Marriage is meant to be hard because it is two incomplete people trying to make life work together. The glory of this union is that as you succeed in making it work, you also learn how to make that same type of union work with God. That to me is one of the greatests gifts of marriage is the insight it provides to our relationship with God. Your marriage to your spouse is intended to represent Christ's love for the Church (Ephesians 5:31-32). That means that every aspect of marriage will teach us more about God's love for us. This is the angle I took on the study questions for Sacred Marriage (PDF) I put together our class. Each lesson looks at Thomas' teachings and than goes through a Bible study related to that topic.

I recommend this book as it will encourage you in your marriage, and it is easy to read. This make it great for group discussions. I was able to do more than one chapter per week, and even though my crowd was parents of preschoolers, they were able to find time to read the chapters.

It is so easy to become complacent in our marriages, so this book would be a good reminder to value and love your spouse - God's perfect gift for you. While you are at, let this book re-ignite your love for God. Marriage is meant to remind us of His love afterall.

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