Preparing for Marriage Devotions for Couples , livre ebook

Baker Publishing Group - Dennis Rainey

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

103 pages

English

Vous pourrez modifier la taille du texte de cet ouvrage

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

It can be tempting for engaged couples to focus on planning their wedding day and ignore preparations for the lifetime commitment that begins after the cake is cut. Now the bestselling resource for couples Preparing for Marriage has a companion devotional that includes fifty short devotions written by Dennis and Barbara Rainey. Preparing for Marriage is a program created by FamilyLife, one of America's leading marriage and family ministries, and is designed to help Christian couples lay the foundation for a strong, lasting, and biblical marriage.

Sujets

Christianity

Informations

Publié par	Baker Publishing Group
Date de parution	07 octobre 2013
Nombre de lectures	1
EAN13	9781441266842
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	1 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0518€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

PREPARING FOR MARRIAGE DEVOTIONS FOR COUPLES

© 2013 Dennis and Barbara Rainey
Published by Bethany House Publishers 11400 Hampshire Avenue South Bloomington, Minnesota 55438 www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan. www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Bethany House Publishers edition published 2014
ISBN 978-1-4412-6684-2
Previously published by Regal Books
Ebook edition originally created 2013
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the English Standard Version , Copyright © 2001. The ESV and English Standard Version are trademarks of Good News Publishers.
Other versions used are:
KJV — King James Version . Authorized King James Version.
NASB —Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible , © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
NIV —Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version ®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2010 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
To Laura You are our Sunshine You are loved!
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction

1. Eleven Rules About Marriage that You Won’t Learn in School
2. Building Your Home on the Rock
3. Marriage Is a Gift
4. The Year of Wet Cement
5. Facades and Storefronts
6. The Seven Nonnegotiables of Life (Part One)
7. The Seven Nonnegotiables of Life (Part Two)
8. Marriage Is Not About You
9. A Grander Plan
10. Leaving Your Parents: The Balancing Act
11. Till Death Do Us Part
12. Sex Outside of Marriage: Where Life and Truth Collide
13. The Big Day
14. About Your Honeymoon
15. Don’t Be a Grasshopper
16. The New Normal
17. The Very Best Single Piece of Advice I Can Give You
18. A Marriage with No Hope (Part 1)
19. A Marriage with No Hope (Part 2)
20. Who Is Your Closest Neighbor?
21. Marriage Secrets from the Real Experts
22. You Have the Power
23. The Shattering of Glass
24. Emotional Adultery
25. Setting Up Guardrails
26. The Shadow of the Past
27. When Conflicts Keep Popping Up
28. Frequent Forgiveness
29. The Grand Illusion
30. What About Children?
31. You’re Joining a Family
32. If Only We’d Known ...
33. What Robs Men of Courage? (For the Husband-to-Be)
34. Five Marks of a Man (For the Husband-to-Be)
35. Becoming a Spiritual Leader (For the Husband-to-Be)
36. Essential Number One: Make God’s Word a Priority (For the Wife-to-Be)
37. Essential Number Two: Love Your Husband Unconditionally (For the Wife-to-Be)
38. Essential Number Three:Become a Helper to Your Husband (For the Wife-to-Be)
39. Who Does the Housework?
40. Making Decisions as a Couple
41. Keep on Running

Appendix: The Secret to Building a Great Marriage and Family
Acknowledgments
After writing close to three dozen books, I want to thank a unique group of people who, if they were honest, stand amazed!
To my 8 th grade English teacher, Mrs. Ladd: You gave me the only spanking I ever received in school, breaking a ruler over my behind in front of the entire class. I have two thoughts for you: I am certain I deserved it! and, it all goes to show that you just never know how effective discipline can be! Bless you . . . you deserve a crown!!!
To my typing teacher, Mrs. Whittington: I thought I outfoxed you by typing 100 words per minute (meriting a speed grade of an “A”) while making at least 30-50 errors (meriting an accuracy grade of an “F”), which all averaged out to be a “C.” This was my goal at the time—to pass your course and graduate. You proved the point that even a student who hated a class can end up effectively using the skills learned.
Thanks to both of you . . . and forgive me, please. I know I was a pain.
And to Dave Boehi: I wish you could’ve known these two educators who preceded you and bore the brunt of my youth. You would’ve liked them both. Thank you for corralling all this material from my writings, broadcasts and other ramblings and ordering them into a devotional that will help engaged couples . . . thank you! You have been a gift to millions through your skills of writing, editing and organization. Thanks to you and Merry, a lot of marriages and families have been served well over the past 25 years. You are a good man. Thank you!
To Bob Lepine: You had a vision for this devotional before I did. What else is new? Thank you for your friendship and faithfulness.
To Bill Eyster: You are a good man. Period. You know this wouldn’t have happened without you. Thank you for being a friend and world changer. And yes, thanks to his bride, “Spicy” Tracey, for standing by your man . . . because he wouldn’t have ever been here without you!
Thanks to the team at Gospel Light for another great job of serving both the author and the reader. To Bill Greig: You have been a good partner in ministry over the past 2+ decades. To Kim Bangs: Thanks for your servant spirit and all the hard work you and your team of Elizabeth Wingate and Carol Eide did.
And to Michelle, who knows where everything is—how to water our plants—and how to serve really well. Thank you for being a woman who is not merely a survivor, but a woman on a mission. You are amazing.
Dennis and Barbara Rainey
Summer of 2013
Introduction
Have you ever driven on a big city freeway—one of those with about five lanes in each direction? It can be a harrowing experience. You don’t like that lane on the far right, because it’s slow—too many trucks and too much merging traffic. You avoid it unless your exit is approaching. If you’re like me, you stick to a middle lane—not too fast, and you can maneuver more easily.
But lots of people like that lane on the far left—the fast lane. They are determined to save those extra five minutes, and they don’t care about those pesky speed limits. There’s danger in moving that fast, but they’re used to it—and they like the speed.
In many ways, you are now living in that fast lane. The months before your wedding are a rush of planning and parties and frenetic activity. You live off emotion and adrenalin.
And then comes “the marriage.”
Engagement certainly was fast for us. In fact, our entire courtship was spent in the fast lane. Though we had been friends for a few years, our courtship really began in the summer of 1972. We dated for six weeks, got engaged and then were married six weeks after that! We often recommend short engagements for couples, but ours may have been just a bit too quick.
There’s one big problem with life in the fast lane during engagement. It’s fine for preparing for a wedding but not for preparing to do marriage . Not for building a relationship. That takes time and thought and communication.
That’s what this devotional is for—to help you periodically pull out of that fast lane as your wedding approaches. Even if you can’t slow the pace of wedding planning, it’s still possible to carve out some time together each day to focus on your relationship.
This book is not designed to replace premarital counseling; you need to make sure you spend time with a pastor, counselor or mentor who will help you learn the basics of God’s blueprints for marriage. In fact, we have a great workbook, Preparing for Marriage , designed for that purpose. And if you are really looking for the very finest training that will prepare you for marriage, we recommend that you not only go through that workbook together but also attend a FamilyLife Weekend to Remember ® marriage getaway before you marry (check it out at www.weekendtoremember.com ).
What this devotional will do is offer practical insights into doing marriage God’s way. And it will help you begin to develop your spiritual life together—reading the Scriptures together, praying and talking about the divine blueprints for building a home and how they apply to your life together.
We suggest spending 20 to 30 minutes on each devotion. Take turns reading aloud to one another; then answer the discussion questions at the end, and conclude your time by praying for one another, asking God to help you apply each truth to your relationship. These spiritual disciplines will be among the most important steps you take as you prepare for doing marriage together. Also note that there are a few devotions specifically for men and a few specifically for women, but even those will conclude by your coming together to share what you’ve learned.
It is our hope that these devotions will provide a needed rest stop in your daily activity—a time to slow down and focus on the wonderful mystery of two becoming one.
Congratulations! Doing marriage God’s way is really the adventure of a lifetime!
Dennis and Barbara Rainey
1

Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain .
P SALM 127:1
For many years, an email with the outline of a speech entitled “Eleven Things You Will Not Learn in School About Jobs”—attributed to Microsoft founder Bill Gates—has circulated the country. I say “attributed” because Gates never wrote or said these words. The list was actually distilled from a 1996 article written by Charles J. Sykes. Of course, whether or not Gates had anything to do with the list doesn’t really matter. The point is that the list effectively reveals that feel-good, politically correct teachings have created a generation of kids with a false concept of reality.
Here are some of the rules of life that you won’t learn in school: Life is not