Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. — John 15:13
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When Jesus said these words to His disciples, He knew the crucifixion was imminent. He wanted them to have confidence in a few things in the days ahead when they would look back on all that happened. First, that His death was rooted in love. Second, that He chose to lay down His life, it wasn’t taken from Him. And finally, that they were His friends. Jesus wanted these men to grasp the depth of His love for them. He wanted them to understand He was choosing to sacrifice because the relationships He had forged with them was real, a true friendship.
In our nearly twenty years of marriage, Scott has never once had to literally lay down his life for me. Nor have I for him. But in countless ways we lay ourselves down every day for each other. And I’m willing to bet the same is true in your marriage.
Here’s the thing, Scott continually places my best interests ahead of his own. He chooses to sacrifice so I can pursue the dreams God has placed in my heart. And he does all of this because he’s not just my husband, he’s my friend.
Several months ago I had a middle-of-the-night conversation with a couple of the college-aged girls in our church. We were talking about boys and relationships and what sort of guys they were looking for. One of the things I told them was this:
Look for a man who willingly sacrifices in order for you to become the you God intends.
But I also told them this — be the girl who does everything she can to help her husband become the man God has created Him to be. I shared some of my favorite verses from Proverbs 31: “The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.” (verses 12-13)
One of my greatest desires as a wife is to bring Scott good not harm every day. And he has that same desire for me. While we may never have to take a bullet for each other, the way he has sacrificed for me and supported me gives me full confidence he would truly lay down his life for me. And I would do the same for him.
~ Teri Lynne
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Today’s Prayer
Lord, we may never be faced with the decision to physically lay down our lives for our spouses. But may we continually live in a way that reveals our willingness to sacrifice everything we have for their best. May we be intentional about bringing good not harm to our spouses — by our words, our actions, and our attitudes. Give us a love that sacrifices willingly and graciously for each other. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
#MarriagePrayers: Give us a love that sacrifices willingly and graciously for each other. (John 15:13) Click To Tweet**********
Thank you for joining us for #MarriagePrayers: 31 Verses to Pray for Your Marriage. Scott and I will be sharing a new verse and prayer every day throughout May, leading up to our 20th anniversary on June 1. You can find every day’s post indexed here. We pray you will be encouraged and challenged as you pray God’s Word for your marriage.
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