May 16, 2020 CAC Living Water Devotional :- MARRIAGE MANAGEMENT
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CAC LIVING WATER DAILY DEVOTIONAL.
Saturday, May 16, 2020
MARRIAGE MANAGEMENT
Read 1 Corinthians. 7:1-16
1. Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman.
2. Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband.
3. Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband.
4. The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife.
5. Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.
6. But I speak this by permission, and not of commandment.
7. For I would that all men were even as I myself. But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner, and another after that.
8. I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, It is good for them if they abide even as I.
9. But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn.
10. And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, Let not the wife depart from her husband:
11. But and if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband put away his wife.
12. But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away.
13. And the woman which hath an husband that believeth not, and if he be pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him.
14. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.
15. But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace.
16. For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband? or how knowest thou, O man, whether thou shalt save thy wife?
MEMORISE: Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband (1Corinthians. 7:3)
EXPOSITION
Marriage remains a divine riddle that no mortal can unravel. Two individuals who hail from different origins, backgrounds and statuses, coming together to become one, is not the work of man, but God Himself (Matt. 19:3). Therefore, making your marriage to work according to the spiritual design requires conscious effort of management of 5he institution.
You might want to ask: Why management? Is marriage not supposed to be enjoyed rather than endured? You probably have asked the right questions, but ‘managing’ marriage here, does not connote living with one avoidable bitterness, pain, torture…that the union has occasioned! Those are not God’s plan for your marriage. Management of marriage is nothing too far or difficult to do. It is a deliberate act of planning, coordinating, directing and controlling all activities or issues that relate to your marriage, with the help of Christ, and by His Spirit.
Any home that is unplanned for will surely fail! You must be a good planner as a stakeholder in the marital institution. The children who are direct fruits of the marriage, including the relations or adopted persons, must be well coordinated in all ramifications. Chief of all, now the husband and wife must not mismanage (abuse of privileges) the wife, and latter must be under the direction and control of the former (Eph. 5:22). In other words, the husband should sacrificially love the wife, while the wife should submissively love the husband. This is how God designed the marriage institution to be, for it to produce desirable result. Should yours fail to follow this, the result is better imagined than experienced! May your marriage receive correct management forthwith, Amen.
PRAYER POINTS:
1. Commit the present unwanted situation in your marriage/family to God, now. Believe He will change your situation positively.
2. Lord, help us to manage our homes effectively, by Your enablement, in Jesus’ name.
3. May our churches be more committed to helping our teeming youths discover God’s true will for them in marriage, career, and all other aspects of lives, in Jesus’ name.
EXTRA READING FOR TODAY: 2 Samuel. 23-24 & 1 Corinthians. 5-6