Love That Lasts A Lifetime

Tom (not his real name) was one of the pastors at our old church. And though we’ve never met, I speak of him often because his testimony is so powerful. Tom became a believer after he was diagnosed with a terminal illness. In his testimony, he praises God for his diagnosis because without it, he would not have come to know Christ. That’s a topic for another blog!  Tom married Susan (not her real name) twenty two years ago, she was also a Christian and equally passionate about her faith and love for Jesus. Four years ago Susan was diagnosed with cancer. Like Tom, she used this illness as a platform to glorify Christ and never doubted God’s love for her, or questioned her faith. Through her illness she never backed down from sharing Jesus wherever she went. Susan went home to Jesus last year, and these were the words that Tom wrote to honor his bride:

“Dearest Friends, I want to let you all know that my beautiful bride went home to be with Jesus early this morning. As many of you know, (Susan) was battling cancer for the last four and a half years. She was a courageous, faith filled warrior in this battle, continually ministering to so many while enduring great pain. Our love for each other was immense so this is obviously the most painful time of my life. God brought me (Susan) as a gift to bless me with twenty two years of an incredible marriage and a best friend. I am the man today because of Jesus and the encouragement and love of my wife. I have never been loved more by anyone than by my wife (Susan). God broke the mold when He made (Susan). I will miss her with all my being.”

Could this be said of us?

Let me ask you, dear friends - Are you going to allow your relationship with your spouse to lead you to Jesus? And then are you going to allow Jesus to heal your wounds from the past that your spouse is triggering? Are you going to allow His healing love and forgiveness to flow out of your heart and to your sweet love, as you communicate His grace and mercy through words and actions of acceptance, affirmation, affection and admiration. Will you allow Jesus to use your spouse to transform your relationship with Him and in turn transform your marriage? I hope you will.