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Marriages are a lifelong privilege of knowing and loving the very person who God has entrusted to you. Isn't it such a wonderful privilege to be trusted by God to be entrusted with caring and faithfully serving your spouse until death parts you?
Loving More with Each Day
Knowing, then, that you're going to spend the rest of your life with that wonderful person you married (yes, you should see your spouse that way), it's worth looking for ways to improve your relationship. Unlike earlier articles that I wrote about marriage, this time I'm going to share just one practical tip to improving your marriage relationship.
And this one thing, if done each day, will greatly help in making your marriage more meaningful, enjoyable, and even more precious. Are you ready? Here it goes:
Spend good quality time with your spouse every day.
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'But I'm Doing That Already!'
You might say that you're doing this already – you spend much time with your spouse, plan dates, and do a lot more. If you are, then you probably know that it's worth doing for the rest of your life. But to those who don't know how to do it, here's what you should know.
1. Spending Good Quality Time with Your Spouse Requires Proper Rest Before It's Done
Any husband who wants to enjoy good quality time with his wife (and vice-versa) needs to get enough rest before doing so. Why?
Failing to get enough rest hinders our ability to focus on our time for and with our spouses. A lack of rest makes us sleepy and tired, and unable to fully shower our attention and strength to our beloved spouses – and surely they'll feel bad about it, and won't actually enjoy the time we spend with them.
2. Spending Good Quality Time with Our Spouses Require that We Shut Down Distractions
We all have to learn to shut down all possible distractions from spending good quality time with our spouses. Yes, close that laptop, put that phone away, turn that TV off, and lower the music volume – and choose to focus on your spouse's voice and non-verbal cues. In short, focus on your spouse.
Learn to ignore calls, texts, and emails. Master the art of denying yourself. If you really love yourself, you should know that loving your spouse is simply showing love to yourself, too (see Ephesians 5:28).
3. Spending Good Quality Time Doesn't 'Just Happen' – You Have to Make Time for It
Plan that weekly date, or even that simple daily dinner at home. And remember that it's not about the time, or the food, or the place, or the amount of money you spend. It's about your spouse and your marriage.
Try to look back to the last time you spent quality time with your spouse. Was it yesterday or probably a year ago? Don't wait too long before asking your spouse to sit down and have a heartfelt chat over a cup of coffee, either at home or at the nearest café. She'll love it.
"As the Scriptures say, "A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one."
This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one. So again I say, each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." (Ephesians 5:31-33)
