31 Days of praying for your husband

Last year my friend posted this on her blog, and I made a "note" of it so I could "do" it. Well, here is my confession. I never did. I forgot I had noted it. Although I do pray for my husband, I love the way this leads you and gives my prayer a break up from the everyday requests (which sadly have become the same daily) and it also gives my prayer time better purpose.

I thought I would re-share with you all so you could benefit from it also.

31 Days of Praying for Your Husband

31 Days of Praying for Your Husband
by Nancy Leigh DeMoss

“She does him good . . .” (Proverbs 31:12a)

Bless your husband by praying for him! The Apostle Paul instructed all Christians to pray for one another (Ephesians 6:18). This includes wives’ responsibility and privilege to pray for their husbands. Earnest prayer for your husband is good for him, for you and the spiritual health of your home (Proverbs 31:11-12).

Satan desires to destroy your husband, especially his character and his leadership in your relationship. Trust God through prayer as you daily surrender your husband and marriage to the Lord’s wise, loving care.

Day 1
Pray that your husband will grow spiritually and consider his accountability before the Lord. Pray that he will guard his heart by developing spiritual disciplines—Bible reading and study, prayer, meditation, scripture memorization, etc. (2 Peter 3:18; Prov. 4:23)

Day 2
Pray that your husband’s relationship with God and His Word will bear fruit in his life. Pray that he will be a man of wisdom and understanding, fearing the Lord. (Prov. 3:7, 9:10; Ps. 112:1)

Day 3
Pray that your husband will be humble and quick to agree with God about his sin. Pray that his heart will be tender toward the voice of the Lord. (Ps. 51:2-4; Micah 6:8)

Day 4
Pray that your husband will grow in leadership skills in your relationship—protecting and providing for you. Pray that he will lead you wisely and love you sacrificially, so that God will be glorified in your marriage. (Eph. 5:25-29; Col. 3:19)

Day 5
Pray that your husband will be faithful to his wedding vows. Pray that he will have a desire to cultivate your relationship as a sign of his loyalty and commitment to you, and as a picture of Christ’s love for the Church. (Prov. 20:6; Gen. 2:24)

Day 6
Pray that your husband will love righteousness and hate wickedness, especially the evils of the culture. Pray that he will recognize and avoid wickedness in his own life, and if necessary, take a clear, strong stand against evil. (Prov. 27:12; John 17:15; 1 Cor. 10:12-13)

Day 7
Pray that your husband will safeguard his heart against inappropriate relationships with the opposite sex. Pray that his heart will be pure and undivided in his commitment to you. (Prov. 6:23-24, 26; Rom. 13:14)

Day 8
Pray that your husband will work hard to provide for your family, to the best of his ability. Pray that the character qualities necessary for a successful career and ministry will be a growing part of his character—persistence, decisiveness, strength, an analytical mind, organizational skills, positive relationships with people, determination, etc. (Rom. 12:11; 1 Cor. 15:58)

Day 9
Pray that your husband handle finances wisely, will have discernment concerning budgeting and investments, and will be a good steward of his money in regard to giving to the Lord’s work. Pray that money will not become a source of discord in your family. (Prov. 23:4-5; Rom. 12:13; Heb. 13:5)

Day 10
Pray that your husband will cultivate strong integrity, and not compromise his convictions. Pray that his testimony will be genuine, that he will be honest in his business dealings, and will never do anything that he needs to hide from others. (Prov. 20:7; 1 Tim. 1:5, 3:7; Eph. 6:10-12)

Day 11
Pray that your husband will have a humble, teachable spirit and a servant’s heart before the Lord. Pray that he will listen to God and desire to do His will. (Prov. 15:33; Eph. 6:6)

Day 12
Pray that your husband will yield his sexual drive to the Lord and practice self control. Pray that your sexual intimacy together will be fresh, positive, and a reflection of selfless love. (Prov. 5:15, 18; 1 Cor. 7:3; Song of Solomon 7:10)

Day 13
Pray that your husband use practical skills to build your family and make wise decisions for your welfare. Pray that he will serve unselfishly. (Gal. 5:13; Phil. 2:3-4)

Day 14
Pray that your husband will speak words that build you and your family, and reflect a heart of love. Pray that he will not use filthy language. (Prov. 18:21; Eph. 4:29)

Day 15
Pray that your husband will choose his friends wisely. Pray that God will bring him men who will encourage his accountability before God, and will not lead him into sin. (Prov. 13:20; Prov. 27:17)

Day 16
Pray that your husband will choose healthy, God-honoring activities. Pray that he will not live in bondage to any questionable habits or hobbies, but that he will experience freedom in holiness as he yields to the Spirit’s control. (1 Cor. 6:12, 10:31; 2 Tim. 2:4)

Day 17
Pray that your husband will enjoy his manliness as he patterns his life after Christ and strong men in the faith. Pray for his physical, emotional, mental, social and spiritual strength. (Eph. 3:16; 1 Peter 2:21; 1 Cor. 10:11)

Day 18
Pray that your husband will have an eternal perspective—living in light of eternity. Pray that he will reject materialism and temporal values and put God first in his life. (Matt. 6:33; Deut. 6:5; Eph. 5:16; Ps. 90:12)

Day 19
Pray that your husband will be patient and a man of peace. Pray that he will not give in to anger, but will allow the Holy Spirit to control his responses. (Rom. 14:19; Ps. 34:14)

Day 20
Pray that your husband will yield his mind and thoughts to the Lord. Pray that he will not entertain immoral or impure thoughts, and that he will resist the temptation to indulge in pornography. (Prov. 27:12; 2 Cor. 10:5)

Day 21
Pray that your husband will learn how to relax in the Lord and, in his greatest times of stress, find joy and peace in his relationship with God. Pray that he will submit his schedule to the Lord. (Neh. 8:10; Prov. 17:22; Ps. 16:11)

Day 22
Pray that your husband will practice forgiveness in your relationship and with others. Pray that he will recognize any roots of bitterness, and yield any resentment and unforgiving attitudes to the Lord. (Eph. 4:32; Heb. 12:15)

Day 23
Pray that your husband will be a good father—disciplining his children wisely and loving them unconditionally. If he is not a father, pray that he will find a young man to mentor in the things of the Lord. (Eph. 6:4; Col. 3:21; 2 Tim. 2:1-2)

Day 24
Pray that your husband will have a balanced life—that he will balance work and play. Pray that he will fear God, but also gain favor with people he knows at work and church. (Luke 2:52; Prov. 13:15)

Day 25
Pray that your husband will be courageous in his stand against evil and injustice, and that he will stand for the truth. Pray that he will protect you and your family from Satan’s attacks. (Ps. 31:24; Eph. 6:13; Ps. 27:14)

Day 26
Pray that your husband will discover and live his God-given purpose. Pray that he will offer all his dreams to the Lord, and pursue only those goals that will bring God glory and count for eternity. (Jer. 29:11; 1 Cor. 10:31)

Day 27
Pray that your husband will understand the importance of taking care of his body—the temple of the Holy Spirit—for the glory of God. Pray that he will practice self-control by making wise food choices, and get sufficient exercise to stay healthy. (Rom. 12:1-2; 1 Cor. 6:19-20, 9:27)

Day 28
Pray that your husband will be a man of prayer. Pray that he will seek and pursue God in purposeful quiet times. (1 Thess. 5:17; Luke 22:46; James 5:16)

Day 29
Pray that your husband will surrender his time and talents to the Lord. Pray that his spiritual gifts will be manifest in his career, at church, and in your home. (Eph. 5:15-16; 1 Cor. 12:4, 7)

Day 30
Pray that your husband will serve God and others with pure motives. Pray that he will obey the Lord from his heart, and glorify Him in everything. (1 Cor. 10:13; John 7:17-18; Col. 3:23-24)

Day 31
Pray that your husband will recognize the lies of the Enemy in his life. Pray that his attitudes and actions will be guided by the truth as he brings his thoughts into captivity to the Word of God. (John 8:44; 2 Cor. 10:4-5)

© Revive Our Hearts. Used with permission. www.ReviveOurHearts.com. Info@ReviveOurHearts.com.

Today is March 31, if I begin this today I will finish it on the last day of April. Of course, it will not "finish" me praying for my husband. I will come back and update you to the fruit of my prayer and the changes I see. I know the Lord is faithful and that if we pray earnestly, we will reap benefits.

I also found this cute little etsy site with "How to Pray" cards. What a neat idea!!! http://www.etsy.com/shop/htpc?ref=seller_info

When "conviction" is applied too quickly...

I spoke in an earlier blog about feeling conviction. Well, it is one of those things that you are supposed to use discernment with. I took the fact that I felt conviction when reading about head coverings as the conviction to head cover. So, let us dig deeper into the subject. To cover your head as a married woman is to show respect for your husband, as being your "head". Well, my husband is not in agreement with head covering. He feels like a woman's hair *is* he covering, therefore he got a tad upset when I started to cover. I got my feelings hurt, and it went on from there. He also does not like "skirts only" which is another thing I had gone to doing feeling under conviction.

Now I realize that my conviction was not to make those changes to conform to being that perfect picture of a "Godly Wife", the conviction was to take a look at my heart and see what I could do to make my marriage better. How can I be a better daughter of the King? It is not by changing my outward appearance to follow others, it is about honoring my husband and submitting to his authority. There it is. That word so many people get scared of, "Submission".

People run too far off in left field when it comes to discussing submission. God submission does not mean:

• You are any less than your husband
• You should put up with abuse
• That you will be walked over
• That you have no say or rights
• That you will be condemned to a life of misery and slavery

What it does mean is that you will:

• Have freedom like you have never known
• Have a relationship that will flourish as the man takes his God given role in the family as leader
• Be respected more by your husband and your children
• Experience a joy that can only be found through following God's plan for your life

If you have not researched and prayed about this, I encourage you to do so. Just in the last weeks I have grown so much and I already see the fruit of these changes in my home.

With those things being said, I am dressing the way my husband prefers me to dress. I am taking his lead with decisions, not running off half-cocked in my own direction.

Day 4

This is day four of getting dressed first thing in the morning. My hope is next week to add in doing something with my face/hair. It is easy to get into "frump" mode when being a stay at home Mom. No one cares what I look like anyway, right? Well, not according to God's plan for my marriage.

When I was reading last night it occurred to me that I tend to get upset with Chris because he does not act like he did when we were dating, when I fell in love with him. However, I was just brought tot he realization that I don't either. Gone are the days when I always wanted to look my best for him, the days when I was amused by the little things, so on. One thing that really made me think is that we are probably the exact same people we were then. The things we looked past because of being in that cloud of new romance are the things that annoy us today. Things such as his pessimism or me being so talkative. If we truly love one another, shouldn't we just accept that these things have been there all along and learn once again to blissfully look past them? After all, they ARE part of the person we fell in love with.

Back to the original point. My goal is to try to prepare myself to look nicer for my husband. I mean, it is the least I can do, right?

If I want him to regain the same attitude towards me that he had when we were first together, I need to regain that same attitude towards him. :D