Marriage Monday - Power of a Praying Wife Week 17

As iron sharpens iron

so one man sharpens another.

Proverbs 27:17

We were not meant to do this life alone.  God intended for us to have others to lean on.  We need those who can lift us up, pray with us, pray for us and encourage us.  Being good friends with Godly people doesn't just happen by chance.  We must pray that such people will come into our lives.  And then when we find them, we should continue to cover the relationship in prayer.

For a long time I felt as though I didn't need friends.  I had my husband, I was fine.  That was all I needed, all I wanted.  But the truth is, we need others in our lives.  We need to surround ourselves with people.  Now I am so blessed to have several wonderful best friends and many more good friends.

My husband needs the same.  This is an area he struggles in, as do a lot of men.  If your husband is the sole provider or if his job simply consumes a lot of his time, it can be difficult to make relationships.  My husband works a full time job, is a children's pastor, coaches our son's baseball team, takes care of our yard, takes care of our vehicles and spends time with his children.  This lives almost zero amount of time for friendships.  Some weeks it is zero amount of time.  But just as we need close, Godly girlfriends, our husband needs close, Godly men in his life.

We need to pray for all of his relationships.  Pray that God brings strong, Godly men for him to be friends with and pray for his relationships with his children, parents, co-works and anyone he spends time with.

We also need to pray for our own relationship with our husband.  That we would be there for each other.  Be kind, loving and always giving.  And lastly, we need to pray for his relationship with God.  Praying that it grows closer and that he relies on God and grows in Him.

This week's prayer:

Lord, 

I pray for {husband's name} to have good, Godly male friends with whom he can openly share his heart.  May they be trustworthy men of wisdom who wills peak truth into his life and not just say what he wants to hear {Proverbs 28:23}.  Give him the discernment to separate himself from anyone who will not be a good influence {1 Corinthians 5:13}.  Show him the importance of Godly friendships and help me to encourage him to sustain them.  Give us believing married couples with whom we can feel comfortable sharing our lives.

I pray for strong, peaceful friendship with each of his family members, neighbors, acquaintances, and co-workers.  Today I specifically pray for his relationship with {name of person}.  Inspire open communication and mutual acceptance between them.  Let there be reconciliation where there has been estrangement.  Work peace into anything that needs to be worked out.

I pray that his heart will honor his father and mother so that he will live long and be blessed in life {Exodus 20:21}.  Enable him to be a forgiving person and not carry grudges or hold things in his heart against others.  Lord, You've said in Your Word that "he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know here he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes" {1 John 2:11.  I pray that my husband would never be blinded by the darkness of unforgiveness  but continually walk in the light of forgiveness.  may he not judge or show contempt for anyone but remember that "we shall all stand before the judgement seat of Christ " {Romans 14:10}.  Enable him to love his enemies, bless those who curse him, do good to those who hate him, and pray for those who spitefully use him and persecute him {Matthew 5:44}.  I pray that I will be counted as his best friend and that our friendship will be counted as his best friend and that our friendship with one another will continue to grow.  Show him what it means to be a true friend and enable him to be one.

Amen

Is this an area of struggle for your husband?  Or does he already have a Godly male friend in his life?  Do you struggle with allowing him the time for friendships?  Share your thoughts with us.