The Prayer Box

Before I got married, a group of my friends joined together and gave me the best gift ever. Through prayerful thought and meticulous planning, these women organzied a marriage rites of passage ceremony (of sorts).  It was an intimate event to commemorate my passage from a single woman to married woman. They shared challenges they had endured in relationships and offered advice on dealing with a variety of issues that I might face in marriage. They prayed for me, laughed with me and encouraged me to be the best wife possible. And at the end of our time together, I was empowered to walk into my new role as a wife.  That day holds so many memories that I will cherish forever.

Still, perhaps the most important thing I left with that day was “The Prayer Box”. I’ve included a picture both above and below.

Maybe it’s so special because my friends thought about who I was and who I was to become – and they wrote words of encouragement that I could refer to throughout my marriage. I’ve gone back to that box many times to read the hand-written notes of encouragement, wisdom and admonition.

And, now as a married woman, I understand that these women took to heart the directive in Titus 2:4 “These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children” (NLT). They shared their wisdom so that I could enter marriage fully prepared to love my husband and also deal with the adjustment of a new life, the demands, the joys, the challenges, the bittersweet days. Only now can I fully appreciate the love behind the gesture of the ceremony they prepared for me that day. And it’s a reminder that we all need to have older, wiser people in our lives that we can learn from and emulate for stronger marriages. There is a blessing in hearing a perspective different than your own to give you insight to handle a situation or wisdom to keep quiet. There is a blessing to hear what others have been through and understand how they triumphed. There is a blessing in understanding what other couples have done to have solid, healthy marriages, that have lasted 20, 30 and 40 years.

So, if you don’t have an older, wiser person to speak into your life, begin to pray that God will open the doors to facilitate it.  It promises to be a blessing.

I’d love to hear from you. What do you think about the role of wise counsel in your life? Are there people who could serve this role in your life? Let me know your thoughts below. If you’ve enjoyed this article, please “like” my page on Facebook by clicking here; follow me on Twitter @thelovejourney7 or sign up below to receive email notifications.

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