Something I’ve Started Doing For My Husband That I Really Enjoy!

And Cultivate Love Update #2

Yep, I’ve started doing something each day for my husband, and I’m surprised how much I’m enjoying it!

Any ideas?

Well, I won’t leave you guessing:

Last month, I started praying for my husband every day.

It’s not that I never prayed for him before, but this is the first time I have consistently prayed for him every day for a whole month.

It’s only as I write this that I begin to understand why I’m finding such joy in praying for my husband:

• I’m intentionally thinking about my husband each day, taking time to think how he’s feeling and what he’s going through, and then giving that to God.

• I’m fulfilling my role as his wife to love, support and stand alongside him.

• I’m connecting with God just a little bit more each day.

• I’m seeing God move in my husband’s life.

It’s amazing actually, the privilege we have as wives. I’d never thought about it before.

There is no one who knows our husbands better than we do.

There is no one who knows better how to support and pray for our husbands than we do.

It is our privilege to have insights into our husband’s life that no one else does, and to bring those things to God in prayer.

We are fulfilling a purpose that no one else on this earth can do!

No wonder joy comes with doing that!

So what’s helping me pray for my husband every day?

• I’m praying at a consistent time of day (mostly), each morning after my husband and the kids leave the house. A regular time helps me remember.

• I’m using the brilliant book *The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie OMartian.

I cannot emphasise how fantastic this book is. It’s not just a prayer book; it’s a marriage book; it’s a devotional.

It won’t just help you pray for your husband; it will change your life too, as you read and pray God’s truth.

There are 30 short chapters, each relating to a different area of your husband’s life, for example his finances, his mind, his integrity, his future. In each chapter there is personal testimony, exhortation, a sample prayer and power tools (relevant Bible verses) to use in prayer.

I haven’t used it everyday. Some days I just pray whatever is most pressing for my husband. But I know once I finish the book, I will start it over again. I really recommend it!

AND…

If you don’t have the book, or just want a boost to get you going, I have created a short email series:

Enjoy 7 Days of Praying for Your Husband

Sign up for free, and for the next 7 days you’ll receive a short email with inspiration, ideas and tips to help you enjoy praying for your husband. 

Yes! I want to enjoy 7 days of praying for my husband!

So, what prompted me to start praying for my husband each day?

It was one of my goals last month for The Cultivate Love Challenge: a challenge to strengthen your marriage, deepen your relationship with your kids, and help your children grow in friendship. You can  check it out here!

And that brings me onto

Cultivate Love Challenge Update #2

Each month, I’m sharing how The Cultivate Love Challenge is going in my family.

Here’s what we did these last few weeks:

(This is way more than I expected to do! I was blessed and touched that my husband initiated lots too.)

1. I prayed for my husband every day (Cultivate Love Idea #24  – the number refers to the Idea # in the Cultivate Love resource so you can find it easily.)

Yay! I did it!

2. We did the first study in the Cultivate Love Bible Study on 1 Corinthians 13 (Cultivate Love Idea #7)

It took 2 weeks to get round to printing a copy for everyone, another week for the print-outs to make it to the kitchen table, and the knowledge that I would be writing this blog post today, for me to actually initiate doing the study yesterday! It was great to do a Bible study as a family. It encouraged some fun discussion, and helped us think about what love means in our family.

3. We wrote positive things about each other using the We Think You’re Great sheets (Cultivate Love Idea #11)

If you do this with your kids, double stress the importance of only writing something positive. Two of our kids wrote that their brother/sister was annoying! Thankfully, they had a laugh about it, as they both said the very same thing about each other. Other than that, these are now very special papers to keep. I was deeply touched by what my kids said about me.

4. My husband and I spent quality time together asking each other questions (Cultivate Love Idea #29)

I was surprised one day when my husband came home from work and took a sheet of paper out of his bag and gave it to me. It was Cultivate Love Idea #29: Questions To Ask Your Spouse.

I was SO touched, firstly that he had downloaded The Cultivate Love Challenge, secondly that he had read it, thirdly that he had chosen one of the ideas for us to do!

So last week my husband and I took time out together to ask and answer each other questions (we gave ourselves a few days before to think up our questions – it would be difficult to do on the spot).

This was the biggest investment we’ve made in our marriage in a long time. It was a wonderful time of sharing at a deeper level. I highly recommend it!

5. My husband initiated a ‘parent date’ with each of our kids

This is a great idea! Totally my husband’s idea, and one I’ll have to add to The Cultivate Love Challenge.

My husband and I are taking our kids out in turns for a meal. A special two-on-one date. A parent date!

Each child gets to choose where they eat (within a budget).

We’ve done 2 kids so far. Yep, my husband and I get to eat out 4 times. Nice!

Actually, my daughter’s date was a little different! She begged to use her budget for clothes shopping rather than a meal. So, our parent date consisted of mum and dad following daughter round clothes shops, while she delighted in trying on different outfits and buying some new clothes.

Both dates were special times of giving our kids undivided attention and love.

6. Bonus treat! My husband and I had a night away. (Cultivate Love Idea #26)

This was my birthday present to my husband. Something we haven’t done in a very long time. It was wonderful.

 

It’s been a great month!

By the way, you don’t have to try and do as many things as we have! It’s just the way it turned out. Plus we are in a new phase of older kids who we can leave home alone when we need to. (You’ll get there. Promise!)

Download The Cultivate Challenge here! And pick one or two ideas to focus on this month.

And how about my next month?

Well, I still intend to read *The Five Love Languages of Teenagers (Cultivate Love Idea #1), which was a goal for last month that I did not get round to.

Other than that, I just want to continue with what’s started this month: praying for my husband (I’ll be using Enjoy 7 Days of Praying for Your Husband too), more of the Cultivate Love Bible Study, and taking our other two children out on their parent date!

How about you? Are you using The Cultivate Love Challenge? How’s it going? I’d love to know. Add to the comments below.