About 6 years ago, Kevin and I were soaking up the sun at his apartment pool. We had an awesome day poolside, relaxing from demanding college and baseball schedules. When we were on the edge of becoming tomato red from the sun, we headed back inside to watch a movie and have dinner. However, once we got inside, Kevin asked me a question that changed the course of our relationship and my spiritual life.
“In comparison to how long you have been a Christian, how much do you really think you know about His Word? I mean, do you feel like you are growing?” (These weren’t his exact words, but something along these lines – he kind of stumbled over his words and said he was asking himself the same questions lately).
I was really quiet for about fifteen minutes and I thought about what Kevin asked me. He was completely right. I was stagnate in my walk with the Lord. That conversation changed how me and Kevin communicate spiritually and opened our relationship up to a new level. So, today I am sharing 4 Ways to Encourage Your Husband’s Walk, but in reality, he encouraged me first so it could really be turned around to 4 Ways to Encourage Your Wife’s Walk.
4 Ways to Encourage Your Husband’s Walk:
1. Notice: Take the time to notice your spouse’s words and actions. Is their life lining up with scripture? Are they reading their bible? Are they engaged with a group of believers? Have the two of you talked about God recently? Take note of how they act when their walk is going good, and when they are struggling. Now that Kevin and I have been together for a long time and communicated about this, we can often tell when the other’s walk isn’t going the best. This is key to being able to encourage one another.
2. Pray for him: Whether his walk is going good or bad, pray for him. Pray that he would have good examples of Godly men in his life to look up to. Pray for his walk, pray for his prayer life, pray for specific areas of his life spiritually.
3. Ask him: Asking him how his walk is going is so important. While noticing his words and actions is good, nothing beats asking him. It may take him a little while to open up about how it is really going, but only he can tell you what is going on with his heart. You can “infer”, but you won’t really know unless you ask. You can also ask how you can support him in his walk and how you can be praying for him.
4. Pray with him: I feel the closest spiritually with Kevin when we are praying together. There is such power in prayer and speaking life over someone. When Kevin has specifically prayed for me and my walk out loud, it has brought such encouragement to me. It has shown me that he notices my walk, cares about my spiritual life, wants to encourage me, and wants to be my partner through life.
My prayer is that these small ways will be a big help to you to encourage your spouse’s walk with the Lord. These conversations might be strained or hard at first, but they are so rewarding with time. I know Kevin told me that when he initially asked me those questions, he was terrified at how I would respond. Then, when it took me about fifteen minutes to say anything, he was even more scared. So, I hope that encourages you to move past the initial awkwardness, because I can tell you from experience that it can be extremely helpful for your marriage and ultimately your walk.
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