Perhaps as a little girl, you dreamed of the day Prince Charming would come on his noble steed and carry you away to his palace. You twirled around in your princess costume dress, imagining it to be your wedding attire.
Perhaps as a young man, you pondered over bringing a girl flowers, chocolate, and a ring, asking her to be your bride. You dressed in your best suit and neatly polished shoes, reflecting over her eager acceptance of your proposal on bent knee.
We get our ideas of what love and romance is at a young age from books and movies that, while are entertaining for the moment, do not show a realistic view of what a lasting relationship between man and wife really is.
There is one most romantic gesture I can encourage you to show your spouse now, even if you have not yet met.
Pray for him. Pray for her.
I didn't catch on to this while we were dating, but some time after we were married, Jason revealed to me that as a young boy, he began to pray for the girl he would one day marry. He prayed generally for the most part, yet there were a few specifics. He prayed his wife would be saved, attend a Baptist Church and have attended a Christian school. Through the prayers of my husband, God prepared me to be his helpmeet by bringing me through all of the items on the checklist.
Whether you are single and have not yet met that special someone or have been married for years, praying for your spouse may be the most romantic gesture you can do for him or her. And parents, praying for your childrens spouses while they are as young as infancy is a most loving gesture you can do for them to safeguard against unequally yoked marriages.
Today, Jason and I celebrate fourteen years of marriage. I need to be reminded to lift him up in prayer throughout the day instead of being wrapped up in my own activities.
So what should you pray for when praying for your spouse or the spouse of your offspring?
1 Pray for their Salvation
This is the most important thing you can pray for. If you are unmarried, pray that your future spouse would accept Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour. Jason started to pray for my salvation as his future wife at a young age. The way the Lord made a way for me to come to know Him still amazes me. I grew up in a Lutheran church, but through different circumstances, my family started to attend a Baptist Church. It was there I heard a clear presentation on the gospel and got saved. Had my husband not been praying for my salvation, who knows if I would have ever heard the gospel or not.
If you are married and your spouse is not saved, let me encourage you to not give up. I have a friend that had been praying for years for her husband. Though he still has not accepted, she keeps praying. Galatians 6:9 says, "And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." I know it may seem like your prayers will never be answered, but don't give up.
2 Pray for their Spiritual growth
I've known a few baby Christians who have done things that devastated their marriage just because of lack of maturity and Bible knowledge. After salvation, we are to grow in our walk with the Lord. 2 Peter 3:17-18 says, "Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness. But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen." Just as babies need adequate nourishment to grow, so does the baby Christian need to be fed the Word of God daily and needs more mature Christians who are willing to help guide him or her as they walk the path of their new faith.
3 Pray for their Safety
Praying for safety is not just for physical safety, but also spiritual. After all, 1 Peter 5:8 says of our adversary, the devil “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” Satan is looking to devour your spouse. He is seeking to destroy your marriage. He would like nothing better. And the more you serve Him, the more fierce the attacks get. Be your husband's cheerleader or your wife's hero and pray for his or her safety, that the Lord would put a hedge of protection around them.
...A more romantic gesture you will never find.
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