It's "Marriage Prayer Friday!"

We all know of marriages that need an injection of energy and strength. Maybe it's even your own. Be encouraged to pray for your marriage and stand in the gap for friends' marriages. Please join us every Friday for this weekly focus. God delights in hearing our collective voices and wants our marriages to be a display of His power and love.

A prayer for your own marriage—

LORD OF PEACE, fill me with the power of Your Holy Spirit so that I am both motivated and energized to love my husband/wife in ways that reflect You to him/her and to others.

I don't ever want to be considered a sluggard, especially when it comes to blessing my husband/wife. Please help me to discover practical and genuine ways of expressing my respect, appreciation and affection — and help me to do it frequently.

I confess that my tongue is sometimes sharp and my body is slow to move in the direction of serving my husband/wife. Lord, is there something unfinished? Has a promise been broken? Is there a chore I can do cheerfully to lift a load for him/her? Are there specific words that my husband/wife needs to hear directly from me? I want to recognize Your prompting in the small things every day as well as the things that seem more significant. Give me Your grace and strength to express myself positively in word and deed so that my marriage is refreshed and grows. Help me to grab hold of opportunities for laughter, encouragement, and lovemaking. Yes, Lord, even that! In Your great mercy and goodness, hear my prayer as I pray in Jesus' name. AMEN

Something to pray for a friend's marriage—

LORD OF PEACE, You have the power to both motivate and energize my married friends to love each other in ways that reflect You. Please shine through the marriages of my friends and family so that people will see the power of the Holy Spirit and believe in Christ!

Please help my friends to discover practical and genuine ways of expressing their respect, appreciation and affection for their spouses — and help them to do it frequently.

Soften their hearts to serve and bless one another in new ways. Lord, open their eyes to things that are unfinished or broken in their relationships so these things can be given the attention they need under Your grace. Enlighten my friends to speak tender, affirming and respectful words to their spouses. Please refresh these marriages I care about, Lord, and help them to grow. Prompt my married friends and family to grab hold of opportunities for laughter, encouragement, and lovemaking. Yes, Lord, even that! In Your great mercy and goodness, hear my prayer as I pray in Jesus' name. AMEN