Marriage Monday - Power of a Praying Wife Week 5

We women like to be shown affection.  We like hugs, hand holding, kisses that just kisses, and sweet touches.  We love affection.  Some men are not sure how to show affection or just don't.
Showing affection shows your mate that you love him, cherish him and are still attracted to him.  While we are still dating, showing affection often comes easy for both of us.  But as time goes on we simply stop.
Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her,  and likewise also the wife to her husband. 1 Corinthians 7:13 NKLV

If this area of your marriage is lacking try three things.
1. Pray.  Use this week's prayer and add to it to personalize it for your marriage.
2. Talk gently and openly with your husband.  Tell him what you like.  If you like when he winks at you, tell him.  If you melt when he caresses your check, tell him.
3. Be affectionate!  Caress him, wink at him, hug him, blow him a kiss, hold his hand, let your fingers graze his fingers as he walks by you.  If you are affectionate with him often, it is likely that he will begin to be affectionate with you.

This week's prayer:
Lord, I pray for open physical  affection between my husband and me.  Enable each of us to lay aside self-consciousness of apathy and be effusive in our display of love. Help us to demonstrate how much we car for and value each other.  Remind us throughout each day to affectionately touch one another in some way.  Help us to not be cold, undemonstrative, uninterested or remote.  Enable us to be warm, tender, compassionate, loving and adoring.  Break through any hardheadedness on our part that refuses to change and grow.  If one of us is less affectionate  to the other's detriment, bring us into balance.
Where any lack of affection has planted a negative view of marriage in our children, or taught them an incorrect way of relating to a marriage partner, help us to model the right way so that they can observe it.  Show us how to openly confess our errors to them and demonstrate our commitment to live differently.
Change our habits of indifference or busyness.  May we not so take each other for granted that we don't make the effort to reach out and touch one another with affection.  Help us not to weaken the marriage through neglect of this vital means of communication.  I pray that we always greet one another with a kiss of love {1 Peter 5:14}.  I know that only the transforming power of the Holy Spirit can make changes that last.  I trust You to transform us and make us the husband and wife You called us to be.
Amen