Dear Wife Whose Plans Are Being Interrupted

I have tasted fear and anxiety. I know too well how persistent impatience feels. I am very familiar with feeling inadequate to meet the needs of my family, and letting the feeling pull me into a pit.

I have felt the stress of having to come up with solutions to situations that were not penciled into my daily calendar. I have felt overwhelmed by circumstances beyond my control.  

I know the struggle of wanting everything to go as planned and having to face the simple truth that things seldom go according to our preconceived notions of how they should.

Maybe you had this beautiful picture of how your marriage would be, these amazing plans for continuous romance, perpetual laughter, and kindness overflowing.  

But the reality is that marriage isn’t always going to go as we planned. Romance gets put on a back burner because of stress and busyness.  Sometimes the tears outweigh the laughter. Often, we can be downright mean to each other. Not at all what we had planned. Not what we envisioned. But nonetheless it can be our reality.

So what do we do?

Whenever we are overwhelmed, aggravated, and wondering why things don’t seem to go our way, we can turn our eyes to Jesus. Ask God for wisdom to see beyond the temporary mess to the eternal promise that we are here for Him, and that our time here is temporary.  

Ask God to give you a gentle heart when you want to lash out. Ask Him to fill your heart with grace so you won’t hold grudges that lead to guilt.  

Matthew 7:7 says, Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

Let’s be quick to ask, seek, and knock. Our Savior is just that–a Savior. He will save us from our attitudes. He will save us from our discontent. He can save our marriage in its entirety if we set our stubborn pride aside and let Him into our troubles.  

Place God at the core of your heart. Put Him in a place of honor in your marriage. Life won’t be peachy every day, and interruptions will still arise. But our reaction to those interruptions can be so much more positive and productive when we let Jesus guide our hearts, our thoughts, and our words. 

Looking for a boost in your heart and marriage? Grab your copy of Dear Wife: 10 Minute Invitations to Practice Connection with Your Husband, here.

Wife Step: Spend some time thinking about how your attitude is when things don’t go your way. How do you react in the big stuff? The small stuff? Ask God for some direction. Seek His guidance in your thoughts and actions. Knock at the door of His wisdom. Apply the grace, peace, and compassion that comes from him into your marriage and see if you handle interruptions in a more positive way.

Betty Predmore is a writer, blogger, speaker, and ministry leader. She is a licensed Christ-based counselor and is Co-founder of the Women of Virtue Empowerment Network, a faith-based non profit organization created for the purpose of inspiring and encouraging women to find help and hope in Jesus Christ. She is also founder of Mom-Sense: Making Sense of Motherhood, where she writes and speaks on motherhood issues. Betty loves to speak at events, sharing practical life application mingled with God’s word, and sprinkled with humor.  She enjoys sharing her blogs on social media as a way of reaching out on a broader spectrum.  Social media has given her a platform to reach much farther than her feet could take her.