Julia Popov of Russia teaches on family life. The #1 reason for Christian families is to live for Christ. Family exists to serve the Lord. We serve God with our family. Marriage is the heart of the family. The wedding and honeymoon should not be the peak of the marriage, but our vision should be that the husband and wife keep getting closer and their passion for each other grows more and more. Your children should envy your love for each other as husband and wife. By loving Jesus, you can love your husband, and by loving your husband, you can love Jesus. When a wife serves her husband, she is serving Jesus. Eph. 5:1 starts by saying that we are to imitate God by living in love. It’s about serving God while married. The Hebrew word for love means to give. Marriage is giving love, not taking. The more you do for your spouse, the more your love grows. Eph. 5:28 is not for the woman to harass her husband, but it’s for the husband; so women, do not use it against your husband. Please Jesus in your marriage, because there will be many opportunities for your husband to disappoint you. It’s easier to respect God, because He is perfect. Wives, respect your husband. Believe in him, believe that he is a great man, speak well of him, especially when others are around. He is the glory of God. Husbands, reflect God’s nature. Take care of your wife’s needs and show love and affection. Show that she’s the most important person, even more important than your work and friends. If she does not get your love, nothing will satisfy her. Men, love your wife. Women, respect your husband.
Family Life Vision
Marriage Dreams or Demands and Expectations
Oleg Popov, from Moscow, Russia, describes what happens in many marriages when each person has a “box of dreams” which turns into a “box of demands and expectations”. Two big “I’s” collide and what might happen is a divorce, which means that both partners are still carrying their boxes of demands, setting them up for a second failed marriage. In a marriage there is always a strong and a weaker person, so what might happen is that the strong person gets his or her way, and the other person is under constant pressure. A divorce may come after many years in the marriage, shocking the strong person, because he or she thought everything was okay. Another thing that might happen is that they try to compromise on everything. “You do your part, and I’ll do mine.” A marriage of compromise is one of contract, rather than covenant. Each person is not concerned about the other, but about the marriage. What is a gauge to know if yours is a marriage of compromise? A marriage of compromise has no romance. It’s like fulfilling an obligation. God wants us to remember that our mates do not owe us anything. How often do you thank each other? Do not use Bible verses like darts at your spouse, but submit to one another because God loves you. Your love for God can turn on your passion for your spouse, and your love for your spouse shows God’s love for both of you. Let God fill you with His unconditional love. Put Christ in the middle of your marriage, and God will give you grace. Pride causes resistance. (Eph. 5:21-25; I Peter 5:5,6)
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Lancaster, PA
Saturday – 6:00 PM