5 WAYS TO PROTECT YOUR MARRIAGE
PRAYER
Prayer is the most incredibly powerful piece of spiritual armor to put on to protect your marriage. Prayer creates not only intimacy with God but with your spouse. Intimacy is based on trust, and trust is built on how we respond to being vulnerable with each other. Praying together helps you show and receive trust that strengthens the bonds of intimacy in your relationship. It is hardly a coincidence that the weapons of God’s Word and prayer are listed concurrently in Ephesians 6. While the Word itself is powerful and prayer is essential, combining the two are even more powerful still. As we abide in Him and His word abides in us, we can more confidently pray His will, enabling us to battle the enemy.
FORGIVENESS
One major and common reason why believers give Satan a legal claim in their marriages is their failure to forgive others and the failures to forgive themselves. Jesus taught is that we are forgiven by God to the same degree we forgive others. “ Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors” Matthew 6:12. The truth is, we can not claim forgiveness from God beyond the measure to which we forgive others. When we refuse to forgive others, we allow Satan to have yet another legal claim. You have the power to do what we will, but you cannot dislodge him until you have forgiven the one you need to forgive. The apostle Paul taught, “ The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds” 2nd Corinthians 10:4. This promise is life changing, meaning the difference for us between victory and defeat in our marriages.
LISTENING
The Reality is that God has given both an exceptional capacity to listen to and love their spouse. Listening has always been more a matter of desire and will than ability. In the end, they will not only recognize your efforts, but they will come away feeling loved and cherished all because you decided to listen. James 1:19 even tells us to “ let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath”. Yes, were all told to master the art of listening. Good listening requires inviting spouses to share, showing understanding, exploring feeling behind words, using reflective listening to clarity what is meant, in reflective listening you speak back what you understand the message which prevents miscommunication that leads to marital breakdowns.
HOLY SPIRIT
To defeat the kingdom of darkness and protect our marriages, God equips us with supernatural tools. One of those tools is the Holy Spirit. God’s intention is to restore to his people the gifts of Holy Spirit. They are the tools and weapons that are needed for doing the work. When a Christian is equipped with the power of the Hold Spirit, they have more power and more spiritual authority in them than all the power of the enemy. We have been given divinely powerful weapons and these can serve as spiritual armor to guard our marriages. However, few understand how to use them. It is so important that this changes. Those who do not understand and walk in this authority, and know how to use these divinely powerful weapons, will find themselves increasingly difficult situations and even jeopardy. The Lord gave us the armor and the weapons of our warfare because we need them.
GOD’S WORD
God’s Word is the most powerful spiritual armor to protect your marriage. It is important that we use His Word to combat the enemy and all his evil forces that will constant try to break your marriage down. The truth is, to overcome evil, we must be alive in Christ, having access to God’s resources, wisdom, power, and weapons He has placed at our disposal. We must know what the Bible teaches about evil. We must also know the provision God has made for us to overcome evil. Being able to use God’s Word against Satan is one of the most important marks of spiritual maturity. When you are dealing with a trial in your marriage, use God’s Word against Satan.