Grace in Marriage–Thank You, God!

The other day I was out in the living room reading and I asked Fred if he would please bring me some water when he came. He said sure. And that was pretty much that.

But then I got to thinking about the many “miserably married Christians” that my pastor and I have mediated over the years … and I was struck yet again by how hard a simple exchange like that could have been.

– I could have been a nagging, critical wife for twenty years so that when I asked Fred for some water, it was just another DRIP on the metal roof of his misery in marriage
– Fred could have been a distant, angry husband who avoided me and disdained me for thirty years (and then responded rudely when I asked for something as simple as a glass of water)
– We could be living separate lives under the same roof; trapped in cycles of bitterness and gracelessness

Instead, by God’s grace alone, I felt safe and comfortable to say, “Hey, Fred, would you please bring me a water?” And he replied, “Sure.”

It’s a tiny moment of life.
And a sweet evidence of God’s precious grace.

Thank You, Lord!

(And thank you, Fred–for being such a precious husband and friend and lover! You make me deliriously happy.)