Why Give Grace?
Theme of the Week: A Grace-Filled Marriage
Sunday, February 7, 2010
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Who Said It … Michael Sytsma
Michael Sytsma is an ordained Wesleyan minister, certified Christian sex therapist, and a licensed professional counselor. He is co-founder of Sexual Wholeness, Inc. (sexualwholeness.com) and founder and director of Building Intimate Marriages (intimatemarriage.org). Michael conducts marriage enrichment workshops and retreats throughout the U.S, and he is also a regular speaker at national conferences, including the Association for Marriage and Family Ministries. He and his wife, Karen, have been married since 1985 and have two sons. What He Said … Why Give Grace?
Imagine a marriage filled with grace. A spouse who extends joy, pleasure, sweetness, kind speech, unmerited favor. My wife does that.
I don't deserve grace for the times I mess up again, or leave a cup in the sink one more time. But she chooses to clean up the sink and put the cup in the dishwasher and never say a word. That's grace.
We extend grace to our spouses for three reasons:
First, because God is a God of grace; he freely extends it to us, and "it is by grace you have been saved" (Ephesians 2:8, NIV).
Second, because it's a healing and restorative force. As God extends his grace to us and as we in turn extend grace to our spouses, we become better friends and lovers and can even experience deep and renewed levels of trust.
Third, we extend grace because it's the only way to have a great marriage that lasts. Our spouses aren't perfect. And neither are we. Grace allows us to have a great marriage anyway.
Adapted from our sister publication Marriage Partnership (Fall/2008) by permission. All rights reserved by the copyright holder and/or the publisher. May not be reproduced. To read the entire article upon which this week's devotionals are based, go to intimatemarriage.org/grace.
Copyright © 2010 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
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Dear heavenly Father, your grace is great! Without it I am forever lost. Empower me to extend grace to my wife because you have extended immeasurable grace to me.
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