Testimony Tuesday. Random.

Testimony Tuesday...

Okay....
1. How is it already Tuesday again?? This past week has flown by!!

2. I saw this on twitter and then our pastor mentioned this quote again last Sunday. "The grass is greener...........where you water it."--Rick Warren Seriously, this quote could be used in marriage, in friendship, in prioritizing, etc. I can't tell you how many times it has popped into my head the past few weeks-usually to convict me about some aspect of my attitude.

3. My biggest struggle is balance. I don't feel like I can successfully budget, coupon, keep the house clean, work out regularly, menu plan and cook daily, and spend adequate quality time with my husband and children. (Oh yeah, or blog consistently.) I feel like I can only do 3 of the above at a time. Oh sure I have a rare week every here and there when I am rocking it and get all of it done. But it is an exception and definitely not the rule. This is really just a confession so that I stay "true" in where I am at in my life right now. I am praying about it and hope to be able to testify to God's glory one day that I have made major progress...but that is where I am at right now.

4. At bible study today there was a "marriage panel" of women that had been married 30 years or more and I thought I would some of the answers that spoke to me.

What do you think the two most important things in a healthy marriage are?

• Respect. (Many recommendations for reading Love and Respect--said it is marriage changing...I put it on our "next" list.)



• Be intentional. When life gets crazy it is easy for quality time (or whatever love language you/your spouse are) to take a back seat...in these times it is especially important to be intentional. (That last sentence is really me paraphrasing what I got out of this point today.)



• One of the ladies said Billy Graham's wife always said the key to a successful marriage is "two people that have learned to forgive".

What are some things that have been challenges in your marriage?

• Overcommitment--she said that she would often over-commit with doing "good things" but with doing so many that her husband and children weren't the priority and that when faced with the choice to not choose good over best. In other words, choose what is best for your family. That doesn't mean to not do any good things. This is one I struggle with because sometimes I have signed us up for too many "good" things and then other times I have not been wise with my time management and therefore feel overcomitted when really if I was being wise with my time management we could do all of our things without being overcomitted. See my dilemma? (:



• Lift up any issue you are having in prayer.

What is some advice for when you just aren't "feeling it" (the "in loveness feeling")

• Remember that your commitment is to God first and then your spouse.



• Remember you are a team with your spouse and he/she is not the enemy. The enemy is Satan.



• Grace--give grace to your spouse just as you want he/she to give you grace. In the moments where you just don't feel like it, CHOOSE to show love to your spouse. Again, lift that issue up to God in prayer and ask Him to help!

Healthy tips to keep marriage fresh (and favorite marriage verses):

• Date night (Proverbs 24:3-4)



• Do "sweet-nothings" for each other (Ephesians 5:31-32)



• Something just between the two of you. Example hide love notes in random spots for each other to find...they had a special word that the note would say that was just between them. (2 Corinthians 1:20)



• Ask your spouse, "How can I pray for you today?"

So this week is pretty random but that is just a few things that have been on my mind lately that I am trying to use to grow!