My husband is a pastor. The only thing predictable about his day is the route he takes to get to the office. When he walks in that door he has no idea what will happen. The first time the phone rings it could be someone sobbing over a hurting marriage, or someone complimenting him on a great sermon. When the door opens, it may be someone with a great new outreach idea (who is also willing to head-up the outreach). Or it maybe someone who is so mad a a fellow member, she wants to leave our church family. When he calls to check in around lunch, I don't know if he's had two hours of uninterrupted study to prepare for his sermon, or if he hasn't even sat down at his desk yet.
Sometimes I forget how hard his job really is. At home, he's Lee or Daddy, not "Pastor Lee." Starting today, I will spoil my husband by praying for him. I will not only pray for Lee as my husband, but really focus on praying for him as my pastor. Revive Our Hearts (a ministry of Nancy Leigh DeMoss) has a 31-Day Challenge to pray for your pastor. It includes topics like praying for his devotional time, friendships, leadership, time management, and even for his financial needs.
Taking the next 31 days to pray for my husband as my pastor will hopefully spoil him, and help me remember what an amazing gift and calling he has (which will in turn, make me want to spoil him even more)!
I loved this post and the 31 day challenge. I sent the link to this page to the women in my small group to join along in praying for our husbands. Thanks so much for this post! Blessings, Brooke
ReplyDeletethere is also a 3o day challenge for encouraging our husbands for husbands who aren't pastors :)
ReplyDeleteHello, there! I connected your blog from "Works for me Wednesday." I have been happily married for 36 years (and counting!), and I thought I would share with you how I turned a source of frustration into a way to pray for my dear husband daily. My hubby has a habit which used to drive me crazy. After showering in the morning, he would sling his wet towel, all bunched up, over the top of the shower door and go about his merry way. I, on the other hand, always hang my towels in such a way that they can easily dry before I use them again the next morning (we use our towels three times between washings). I used to grumble and complain to him about taking "just that teeny bit of time" to straighten his towel, to no avail. And then I had a thought (I'm convinced it came from the Lord) that this annoying habit of my husband's might be a GOOD thing. In the busy-ness of life, I had been forgetting to hold up my husband in prayer every day. I decided that from that day on, every morning, when I straightened his towel, that would be my reminder to pray for him, thank God for him, and ask God to bless him that day and use him for His purposes (my husband is a middle school teacher). What a difference that has made in our marriage and in my husband's life! That decision was made over 15 years ago, and I still count it a joy to pray for my sweet hubby every morning in our bathroom. In fact, one day recently he actually straightened his towel, and I had to laugh and ask him "What - you don't want me to pray for you today?" Just thought you gals might want to see how God turned a frustration into a REAL blessing.
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