Quiet Moments with God for Couples

By Honor Books

Work, children, money, social obligations - all can pull us apart and put us at odds with our beloved. Take a few moments to turn down the noise of life and focus on your relationship with each other with God as the center. This is intimacy at its bare essence, sharing your heart and soul with the love of your life and the Author of Love. Medita

• Language: English
• Publisher: Honor Books
• Release date: Dec 9, 2022
• ISBN: 9798888980149

Book preview

Quiet Moments

with God

for Couples



RACINE, WI

Quiet Moments with God for Couples

ISBN 979-8-88898-113-9 - Paperback

ISBN 979-8-88898-013-2 - Hardcover

ISBN 979-8-88898-014-9 - Ebook

Copyright © 2022 by Honor Books

Cover design by Faille Schmitz.

All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. Contents and/or cover may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form without the express written consent of the Publisher.

Introduction

Quiet moments—for personal meditation, for time together as a couple, for fellowship with God—we all need them, and we need them all on a regular basis.

Our world is moving and swirling past us with great speed and intensity. It’s tempting to put those quiet times aside and regard them as luxuries rather than necessities. But the truth is—moments of quiet tranquility are critical. They help us define our relationships, our priorities, and ourselves. Without them, we become slaves to our lifestyles rather than the masters of them.

We hope you will find that the devotionals in this book help to make your quiet moments productive and inspiring. We have selected those that relate specifically to the issues couples face. And we have made them short enough to fit easily into your special time together, yet long enough to provide a solid kick-off for your day. As you read, we hope that they will draw you closer to each other and closer to God.

Like the First Morning

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Psalm 100:5

What a joy it must have been for the first man and woman to awaken in the morning just after their creation!

Before them lay a beautiful garden without blemish, a harmonious creation without turmoil, an orderly environment without so much as a weed or thorn. Most wonderful of all, they freely walked and talked with the Lord in the cool of the day. Wouldn’t you love to experience that glorious state of being for just one morning!

Eleanor Farjeon must have felt the same elation when she penned the words to her now internationally famous hymn:

Morning has broken like the first morning;

Blackbird has spoken like the first bird.

Praise for the singing! Praise for the morning!

Praise for them, springing fresh from the Word!

Sweet the rain’s new fall sunlit from heaven,

Like the first dew-fall on the first grass.

Praise for the sweetness of the wet garden,

Spring in completeness where his feet pass.

Mine is the sunlight! Mine is the morning

Born of the one light Eden saw play!

Praise with elation, praise every morning,

God’s recreation of the new day!¹

While we may not awaken to a perfect, pristine world in our natural bodies, we can awaken to a brand-new day in our minds and hearts. We can walk and talk with the Lord all day long. Each day the Lord presents to His beloved children wondrous possibilities to explore with Him.

Let us always remember that He is the Creator and our loving Father. No matter what state we find ourselves in, He can create something new in us, for us, and through us. What cause for praise! His next act of creation is waiting to unfold as we yield our life to Him this morning and throughout our day!

Love is a refreshing breeze through the windows of the heart.

Cherie Rayburn

First Cup

In the morning my prayer comes before you.

Psalm 88:13 nkjv

Many people wouldn’t dream of starting their day without a cup of coffee. They count on that first cup of the day to wake them up and get them going.

There are others who have discovered an even more potent day-starter: first-thing-in-the-morning prayer.

For some, this is a prayer voiced to God before getting out of bed. For others, it is a planned time of prayer between getting dressed and leaving for work. For still others, it is a commitment to get to work half an hour early to spend quiet, focused time in prayer before the workday begins.

Henry Ward Beecher, one of the most notable preachers of the last century, had this to say about starting the day with prayer:

In the morning, prayer is the key that opens to us the treasure of God’s mercies and blessings. The first act of the soul in early morning should be a draught at the heavenly fountain. It will sweeten the taste for the day.

. . . And if you tarry long so sweetly at the throne, you will come out of the closet as the high priest of Israel came from the awful ministry at the altar of incense, suffused all over with the heavenly fragrance of that communion.²

A popular song in Christian groups several years ago read, Fill my cup, Lord; I lift it up, Lord. Come and quench this thirsting of my soul. Bread of heaven, feed me till I want no more; Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole.³

Morning prayer is a time to have your cup filled to overflowing with peace. Then, as you have contact with other people at home and at work, you can pour that same peace into them. And the good news is—unlimited free refills are readily available any time your cup becomes empty throughout the day!

Without prayer, no work is well begun.

Book of Wisdom

The Morning Sacrifice

Their duty was . . . to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord.

1 Chronicles 23:28,30 NKJV

The Levites were never given the option to skip morning devotions. They were commanded to keep the morning sacrifice every day, without exception. As part of the morning ritual in the Temple, the high priest had these three duties:

to trim the lamps, making sure each oil cup of the menorah had sufficient oil and that the wicks were properly positioned,

to burn sweet incense on the incense altar,

and to burn the fat of the peace offerings.

Once a week, as part of the morning ritual, the priest replaced the shewbread that was on constant display before the Lord.

The priest performed these functions in silent worship, wearing a highly symbolic vestment. As he worked, the only sound was the light tinkling of the bells on the hem of his garment.

This ancient ritual may seem strange and of little meaning to us today, but one great lesson we can draw from it is this: the morning sacrifice involved all of the senses and the mind. The priest stood before the Lord with his identity clearly displayed; he stood before the Lord for examination.

His sacrifices touched upon all aspects of his humanity: The lamps symbolized his need for light—the ability to see with spiritual eyes. The incense was a picture of his need to dwell in an atmosphere infused with God’s holy presence. The peace offerings were a sign of his need for peace with God and his fellow man. And the shewbread demonstrated his need for daily provision, which only the Lord could provide.

This was a ceremony that, in its silence, spoke clearly: We need You. Without You, we have no life, no wholeness, no meaning.

We may not have a ritual to follow in our morning devotional times, but we must come before the Lord with the same spirit of dependency and obedience. The day ahead of us is not ours. Our lives belong to God. (See 1 Corinthians 6:20.)

Everything we need, He will supply. The day is His, even as we are His.

I think that is ever a mortal heard the voice of God it would be in a garden at the cool of the day.

F. Frankfort Moore

Straight Ahead

It is God who arms me with strength and make my way perfect.

2 Samuel 22:33

The sun is barely up, and that annoying alarm clock is blaring in your ear. Groggily you reach over and fumble around until you hit the snooze button. Just a few more minutes, you think, and then I can get up and face the day.

The alarm sounds again. You know you can’t put it off any longer. It’s time to face the inevitable. It’s time to wrestle another day to the ground.

After a couple of cups of coffee, your brain is finally humming. Now the question is, which of today’s tasks should you tackle first? Before you begin your work, you might seek inspiration from this prayer, written by Jacob Boehme, a German shoemaker who was born more than four hundred years ago:

Rule over me this day, O God, leading me on the path of righteousness. Put your Word in my mind and your Truth in my heart, that this day I neither think nor feel anything except what is good and honest. Protect me from all lies and falsehood, helping me to discern deception wherever I meet it. Let my eyes always look straight ahead on the road you wish me to tread, that I might not be tempted by any distraction. And make my eyes pure, that no false desires may be awakened within me.⁴

A day without distractions, focused only on the important.

A day viewed through pure eyes.

A day marked by goodness and honesty.

A day of clear direction and no deception.

A day without falsehood and lies.

A day in which God’s Word rules our minds and His truth reigns in our hearts.

Now that’s a day worth getting up for! That’s a day worth embracing fully, from the first second.

Give what you have. To someone, it may be better than you dare to think.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Morning People

God called the light day, and the darkness he called night.

Genesis 1:5 nkjv

God made both the day and the night, and He called both of them good. It seems God also made morning people, who have their greatest energy level in the morning, and night people who are most productive in the late hours. Let’s look at some of the joys of being a morning person.

God promised the children of Israel they would see the glory of the Lord in the morning (Exodus 16:7). This promise came to them when they were hungry and in need of bread to eat. God supplied manna every morning until they reached the Promised Land. Like the children of Israel, we, too, can see the glory of the Lord when we seek Him in His Word. Each morning He provides the nourishment we need for the day.

Another blessing of morning time is it often brings an end to suffering and sadness (Psalm 30:5). Each day brings us a new opportunity to seek God for a fresh perspective on the problems and needs in our lives. When we give every minute and every circumstance of each day to the Lord, we can expect to see His light dawning throughout our day.

There are many examples in Scripture about people who rose early to meet God or to be about doing His will, among them Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Job, and even Jesus. The Gospels tell us that Jesus went at dawn to teach the people who gathered in the temple courts.

The most glorious event of Christianity—the Resurrection—occurred in the early morning. Each morning we can celebrate Jesus’ Resurrection as we watch the light of the day dispel the darkness of night.

Start your morning with God; he’s been up all night waiting for you!

Unknown

Working Together

As God’s partners we beg you not to toss aside this marvelous message of God’s great kindness.

2 Corinthians 6:1 TLB

Toyohiko Kagawa was a noted Japanese poet and Christian social reformer. Although he suffered poor health, he lived among the needy in the slums and worked tirelessly to overcome social injustice. His poem, Work, speaks of the source of his strength:

Work

I shall not say

That I am busy—

Those who would help

The troubled people

Should expect to be

Busy always.

Christ was so thronged

By multitudes

He had no time to eat.

He said,

"To him that hath

Shall be given;

And from him that hath not

Shall be taken away

Even that

He seems to have."

Which means

That if we do not use

All of our powers

We lose them. . . .

Then, too, the problem is

To do our work

With all our hearts;

We do not tire

Of doing what we love.

But most of all,

Our strength and comfort come

Only when God

Dwells in our souls

Working together with us.⁵

No matter what work you do today, you will work with purpose and strength if God is your Partner. He is always with you, waiting for you to simply ask for His strength to finish the job!

We live in deeds, not years. In thoughts, not breaths.

Phillip James Bailey

Take Your Time

I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.

Psalm 119:16

Frank was like many Christians. He had been taught that if he truly wanted God to guide his steps each day, he should spend time with Him first thing every morning. He found a copy of a Through the Bible in One Year plan and got down to business: three chapters each morning and two each night.

Somehow though, the inspiration he expected to discover escaped him. He discussed the problem with his friend Carl. Frank said, I wasn’t sure how I would find the time to read the Bible every morning, but I manage to squeeze it in. Sometimes I have to rush through the chapters a little, but I always remember what I’ve read. You could quiz me on it, and I’d get an ‘A.’ So why do I feel as if I haven’t really read it?

Carl answered, "It sounds to me as if you’re reading the Bible the way you would a textbook. If you want to get into the meaning behind the words, pray before you read, and ask God to reveal things to you. Instead of looking at the

Bible as a reading assignment, think of it as a special meeting time with God—time you set aside to sit down and hear what He has to say to you."

I get it, Frank said. I was doing the old ‘what’s in it for me?’ and expecting God to reward me for putting in the time.

Give yourself more time to read and study, Carl suggested. Even a few extra minutes can make a big difference. Just remember: the more time you give to God, the more time He gives back to you. Your day will go much better if you let Him set the pace and listen for what He has to say.

While it is important to read the Scriptures daily, it is far more important to read until you sense in your spirit that God has said something to YOU. Don’t be concerned about reading a specific number of verses or chapters. The key is to read with a listening ear.

A lot of kneeling keeps you in good standing with God.

Unknown

The To-be List

When the Holy Spirit controls your lives he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

Galatians 5:22-23 tlb

Nearly all of us face our day with a to-do list. The Scriptures compel us, however, to have a to- be list.

While it may be important to accomplish certain tasks, engage in certain projects, or have certain encounters during a day, what is more important for eternity is the person we are throughout the day.

From a to-do perspective, we tend to come before the Lord and say,