More of Him

This song has been on my heart all day. Grant and I asked our dear friends to sing the following song at our wedding. Written and recorded by Eric and Leslie Ludy, you can listen to and download the song on iTunes.

In a marriage, it is easy to demand that things be all about us. More of "my way," more of "my needs met" and "my likes." But in reality, for a marriage to flourish and thrive, it should be ALL about more of Jesus.... in life, and in marriage.

I stand before you nowWith a sacred vow
To love you for a lifetime
To give all my heartBut there's One who's there
Where my love will fail
And He is all that I'm not

So now I must decrease
Usher His full glory in
May there be less of me and more of Him

When you see me
May you see reflections
Of One who's perfection won't end
When you hold me
May you feel the touch of
The One who loves much more
Than I can comprehend
When you fall more in love with me
May you fall more in love with Him


As the years go by
May I always try
To draw you closer to your one true destinyMy love for you is great
But it's just a taste
Of what's waiting in eternity

So now I must decrease
Usher His full glory in
May there be less of me and more of Him

When you see me
May you see reflections
Of One who's perfection won't end
When you hold me
May you feel the touch of
The One who loves much more
Than I can comprehend
When you fall more in love with me
May you fall more in love with Him

I Promise To Be There... Occasionally.

My sister had a great status on Facebook this morning that convicted me, challenged me, and inspired me. I'll share it with you:

Does a wife have to write down when to talk, spend time or show love towards her husband on her calender? Does she talk to him just one time a week IF she feels ok? NO! Then we as Christians should NOT do the same to God. We are the Bride of Christ therefore HE is our husband. We should delight ourselves in Him. Lets not cheat on HIM with our pillow, FB etc or even OUR time. He wants to spend time with us.

How true that is! As a newlywed, I understand it in a new light. I would never even think of arranging time on my calendar to "fit" my husband in my life when it is convenient for me. I would never cheat on Him in any way with any one! I would never ignore him throughout the week and save the sweet looks, praising words, and gentle touches for one day of the week. I would never act like I wasn't married when around friends, family, or strangers. How could I?? I have given my all to him and have promised to be faithful and true forever. I LOVE being married and I love spending time with my husband. While he is at work, I spend the day making the house and home acceptable to him; cozy, clean, comfortable. When 5 o'clock rolls around, I'm watching the window, excited about seeing him after a day's work. I work to make it quite clear that I am married; I am taken; I belong to someone.  Why would a wife act differently??

But my sister had a point. Too often we, as spiritual brides and wives, do exactly that! We ignore our Prince throughout the week. We go to work, go to school, go to parties, clubs, the bar, and then pop in Church Sunday morning and put on a grand show. We tote our Bible into Sunday School and read His love letter to us, without being moved or affected...much less changed. We sing the hymns, nod our heads during the sermon, then go home. And as we reach our house, the Bible is put back on the shelf where it will remain for the rest of the week. We do not pray (unless we need something). And we assume that our Groom is satisfied and pleased with our "time."  God, forgive us. We cheat on Him. We are unfaithful to our God, putting everything in the world above Him. We will sleep late and skip Church, we will read books and magazines more than our Bibles. We will spend more time watching TV, surfing the internet, or out with friends than in the presence of God, praying. We use our talents and gifts to glorify ourselves instead of glorifying Christ and leading others to Him. When we asked Him to save us and come into our lives, we relinquished our rights. We gave Him all. And quite often, we take it back later. When we want our way, instead of His, we break our promise to serve Him, obey Him, follow Him, and love Him. We do what is convenient for us, instead of what is commanded of us.

We have made it too easy to forget and ignore our Bridegroom. We don't want Him "in the way" of our activities and plans, because...well, let's face it, He may not like them. Yet, we claim to be His servants, His children, His BRIDE.

I am guilty, too, of not giving my Heavenly Love as much time as my earthly love. I am guilty of being more excited to see my husband, than spending time in the presence of my King.

So it is time to change. It is time to re-evaluate. It is time to repent.

If you are human, like me, then you are probably in the same shoes as I am. So join me in giving Jesus, our Heavenly and Mighty Prince, our ALL...every day, every hour, every moment.

Revelation 19:7 -
"Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready."

Eternally Newlyweds

Can I just say right now that I loooooooooove being married?

Can I say that? Good. Thank you. ;)My hubby and I have been married for a grand total of 95 days! ....(which, sadly, is a record these days)

We are still newlyweds. *bats eyes*

Actually, Grant and I have both made a decision that we will work to have the "honeymoon" feeling for the rest of our lives. We want to always be so totally in love that, 20 years from now, people will think we are just newly married. Tomorrow, we want to be more in love with each other than we are today. It takes work. It takes effort. There have been days when we have grown lazy. But all in all, I have to say that we feel more blessed, more excited, more passionate, and more in love today than on our honeymoon. So far, so good!

You know, as a bride and as a wife, I want to feel like a newlywed for the rest of my life. But here is a thought: Should we not feel the same way about our Heavenly Husband? Think about it. Go back in time. When you first asked Jesus to come into your heart and life and change you, make you whole, make you new, and SAVE you, didn't you feel just wonderful?! :) Didn't you feel light and happy and completely at peace? Didn't you feel like you could walk on air? Didn't you want to shout, laugh, and cry all at the same time? You were COMPLETELY in love! You were a spiritual newlywed. :) Why is it that we lose that newlywed feeling towards our Love? Why do we get lazy in our attempt to fall more and more in love with Christ? Why are we slack? Why are we selfish and indifferent? Why do we act so deeply amazed by Him when we walk in Church, but then leave and ignore Him the rest of the week? Or call to Him when we are in trouble? Is that the reason we "married" our Heavenly Prince? Would any wife marry her husband only to give him attention one day a week? Call him only when she needs help changing a flat tire?

It is a profound thought. A convicting one.

As a wife, I adore my husband! Though he is human, I look at him as my Prince and my Knight. I want to be with him all the time. I watch the window and run and fix my hair as 5 o'clock rolls around each evening, when I know he is about to come home from work. I want his thoughts and opinions about everything. I want his approval. I want him pleased. So why are we not the same (and more!) with the King of Kings? Why do we not want to be in His presence every moment of every day? Why do we not anxiously and excitedly long for Him to come to us? Why do we not rid ourselves of the spiritual stench and sloppiness in our lives for Him? Why do we not seek Him in our every decision? Why do we ignore His commandments and standards and rules for our living? Why do we not care about pleasing Him?

I would have to say that we, as spiritual brides, are pretty rotten wives sometimes. We need to get our perspective corrected and work a bit harder. I don't know about you, but I want my relationship with my Heavenly Love to be MORE blissful and amazing every day. I want to be eternally newlyweds with my Jesus! Just as I long and work to keep the passion alive with my husband, I should work harder and long more strongly to keep the Heavenly Honeymoon spirit alive and well in my relationship with Christ.

....it's something to think about.


John 15:9 -
As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.

Song of Solomon 8:6a, 7a -
Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death...Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it:...

Jeremiah 31:3 -
The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

Pamela's Prayer

If you have never seen the inspirational movie, Pamela's Prayer, than you are definitely missing out! My parents discovered this movie several years ago and it was such an encouragement to me in my commitment to chaste living.

This is the trailer of a great and powerful movie that promotes purity and saving everything for marriage. Based on the true story of Pamela Bucklin, it is about a girl who obeys her earthly and heavenly father, and who pursues righteous and pure living....including saving her first kiss for her wedding day. Check it out and be inspired!

Man WANTED!!

One of my dear friends wrote the following years ago and I love it! Let it be an encouragement for all you single ladies out there to 1) make your standards Godly, 2) set your standards high, and 3) trust your future with our God, the King.

Man Wanted: Must be sensitive, honest, understanding, and caring. Must have good relationship with the Lord and be of high moral character. Must be strong for carrying overloaded luggage and must be brave in order to provide protection from bugs and rodents. Must have a working knowledge of the art of giving compliments and must know a good place to buy flowers. Most importantly, must possess large amounts of love to be given freely and often.

"Sometimes my friends ask me how I found a wonderful guy like you.
I tell them I placed a want ad with God."
(Courtesy of Rachelle Wardell)