Blessing of Marriage

This month we are celebrating 25 years of marriage. Starting out, we learned how to live together and function as a couple and later as a family. As we began to discover the intricate machinery of our relationship. We began to see and understand God's design for marriage.

Several years ago we read a passage from a James Dobson book which challenged us greatly. I'm paraphrasing, it started out with: For every 10 couples who marry, 5 will divorce. (an unfortunate fact however not the point of the book)But what happens to the other 5 that stay together?

3 will struggle but stay together. Only 2 will achieve the relationship goal of Genesis: A man will leave his father and mother and cleave unto his wife and the two shall become one flesh.

God's design in marriage was to bless both participants with a greater blessing than either could achieve apart. We see in God's plan that husbands and wives if they learn to function together as one have great spiritual authority and power over their situations in life.

When confronted with a difficult situation, we have seen God come to our defense with great speed and power when we pray together. Several years ago our son was diagnosed with a serious learning disability that threatened to prevent him from learning.

We attacked the situation in prayer together. We saw our son make great progress so that by his senior year of high school, he was in the gifted program and taking college level courses at a local college. Now he is a sophomore in college, in the honor society and in a nursing scholars program.

We credit all of this to God through the power of prayer. The kind of prayer that God cannot deny. The prayers of a husband and wife praying together. Today, if you need a breakthrough. Pray together and ask God to do what he so desires to do for you. To bless you!

Julie and Julia

We saw Julie and Julia tonight. It was quite fun. Most people would csll it a chick flick. However, Alan enjoyed it as much as I did. It's two beautifil love stories intertwined into one story line. In both cases the husbands support their wives, while the wives pusue their dreams. Julia Childs', husband works for the governmenr during the McCarthy era. While Julie's story takes place in modern day New York City. I didn't know that it was a true story until the end of the movie, which makes it that much more intriuguing.I never knew much about julis Childs, but I am ready to get a book about her. What a loveable character!

I think the part I love best is the way marriages were depicted. The husbands and the wives were so in love with one another. They laughed together, supported and affirmed one another. It was rerfreshing! I am so tired of seeing dysfunction in families and marriages amongst movie stars and in the entertainment industry. People need to see what healthy looks like in this crazy, mixed up world. Keep it coming!

Years ago as Jamie and I were beginning our work with married couples, we visited with Reverend Frank Barker. Reverend Barker, now retired was the founding pastor of Briarwood Presbyterian church in Birminham. As Frank shared with us that afternoon, we began to see the heart of a man committed to doing God's work without regard to himself. He so unselfishly served God with all of his being during his time as Senior Pastor at Briarwood.

He spoke of one particular situation in which one of the elders in his church was preparing to leave his wife. The man was involved in an affair and had told his wife that he was leaving her. Frank arrived at the man's house as he was preparing to leave.

Intervening in the situation, Frank pleaded with him not to leave her but to come to his senses and see what would happen to him and his family if he were to leave. Finally, begging him not to destroy himself, Frank convinced the man to stay and break off the affair.

Because of Frank's willingness to stand in the gap, the man and his wife reconciled and worked out their problems. He was willing to do whatever it took to turn the situation around.

We were so touched by his simple obedience to God's word to be a watchman on the wall and to speak the truth in love. It reminds us that sometimes what is needed is for us to get in the face of one caught in sin and do what is needed to bring repentance.

Jamie and I will forever be grateful for his Christ like example and pastors heart.

Almaty

Jamie and I are having breakfast tomorrow with a great friend and missionary, John Weed. John has been working in the nation of Kazakhstan for over 10 years. He planted Joy Church in Almaty and through his leadership the church has grown to over 10,000 primarily Muslim Christians. Joy Church has planted over 50 churches in the country of KZ.

The people there are desperate for the life giving word of Jesus Christ. Joy Church sponsors a drug and alcohol rehab facility as well as an orphanage located in neighboring Tajikistan. Please pray for the people there that the evil one will not be able to blind their eyes to the truth of God's wonderful good news.

John has asked us to lead a marriage retreat in Almaty in which he can bring in the pastors and their wives from all 50 of their church plants. The pastors and wives almost never receive any ministry themselves because the people in their churches are so needy. Please pray that we can minister life and refreshing to them as we pour into their lives. These men and women have sacrificed much to be a believer in Jesus Christ.

Reform Divorce

In the early 1970's Alabama, following the state of California's lead, changed their laws concerning divorce. Alabama became one of the first states to enacted a "No Fault" Divorce law in which it became much easier for married couples to divorce.

As no-fault divorce gained popularity, the great majority of divorces where granted on the basis of incompatibility. In 1995, the state's divorce rate was 43 percent higher than the national average.

Couples mutually agree to marry however with no-fault divorce legislation, one party can unilaterally end the marriage without consent from the other party. Prior to the passage of no-fault laws, both couples had to consent to divorce and often a judge would threaten to impose sanctions that led couples to try and work things out.

We desperately need to reform our States divorce laws to remove no-fault language. Please join with us in supporting divorce reform at www.reformdivorce.org