Living intentionally: prayer and respect

I can hardly believe that I'm getting married in 17 days! Marriage has always seemed like a far-away, grown-up thing and now it is right here practically on top of me! I guess I am sort of an adult now :P

Anyway, I found a blog post today that had some marriage advice that seemed pretty good to me (obviously I haven't tried any of it yet!). I really liked her practical advice about establishing times to pray together as a couple, because I can see that as being something that could get neglected if we aren't intentional about making it happen, unless Paul is far superior to me in this area of life, which could definitely be the case :) She suggests that you commit to praying together twice each day: once in the morning when you wake up and once at night before you go to sleep - and if someone is asleep, the other person can wake them up to pray! I am a fan of praying but not so much of being woken up... I know that it is worth the inconvenience, though :) A marriage needs (that seems like such a weak word!) to have God as its center and focus to survive and flourish with love and joy, and prayer together seems like a really good way to strive to keep Him as the foundation.

Another thing she wrote that I really liked - well, I liked the whole thing a lot and I'm having trouble choosing just a couple things to elaborate on - but anyways, one other thing that spoke to me was her counsel to "bathe your husband in respect in every possible way you can." I don't have an internal issue with respecting my fiance, because I admire him in so many different ways for so many different things, and I really value his desire to seek God and his heart for other people. However, I think there are definitely times when I don't show that respect in my interactions with him and with others, just because I don't consciously think about it! So that is something I want to improve as well.

Anyways, if you are also nearing marriage (or are already in it, or are just curious) you should go check out her post and read the whole thing! I think it is really valuable.