As I murmured the Lord’s Prayer, I felt more anchored. Steady. Jesus told us to pray these words, so this must be a good springboard. This marriage prayer reminds us of who we are, who God is, and how we fit into His kingdom.
Marriage Prayer
Our Father in heaven…
We are not alone. We tend to forget we are not left to our own devices and resources. We are not to depend on our own strength, wisdom, and righteousness.
(Prayer reminds us that God is in every situation, and every detail. He is our God, and He is our Father so He is faithfully committed to providing for us. So that means when you are in the middle of the most disappointing and frightening moments of your life, you are not isolated. You are not without hope. You have a Father in heaven who is with you in your struggle. He will not let you go, and knowing this can make all of the difference when we feel lost.)
Hallowed it be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
God has a larger purpose for our marriage than what we can see or know. We can easily focus on our own version of how our marriage should look, with us as the miniature rulers. But when we pray these words, we are acknowledging that God is in control of us, and we are not in control of each other. We’re offering our own will in exchange for God’s will.
(Real unity happens when we put away our own agendas and pursue God’s plan together. It reminds who is King and which kingdom is best. Serving God together in a marriage, rather than ourselves, is the best way to be knit together in unity and love.)
Give us this day, our daily bread.
We are needy. We are dependent upon God for the basic necessities in life. From the bread we eat to the character traits we display. We need God. We don’t have the ability to turn ourselves into loving, gentle, faithful, kind, forgiving people. This only happens as his Spirit transforms us and changes us, sometimes very slowly.
(Prayer humbles us, and rescues us from ourselves and reminds us that we can never be who we need to be without God’s intervention and restoration. I forget this far too often. I try to figure out all of the answers to my problems, and the wonder why life feels so scary and difficult. Instead of leaning on my own understanding, I need God to help me and lead me and protect me.)
Forgive our debts as we have also forgiven our debtors, and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
This reminds us that our sinful hearts are working against us, tempting us from the inside.
(Prayer causes us to look within, to stop blaming others, and to accept responsibility for our behavior and to receive forgiveness and help. Prayer reminds us that our biggest problem is our own self. But our Savior is there to forgive and redeem. It really is a daily battle, but we can’t give in. We have to keep going to the Cross over and over. Repenting and forgiving one another.)
For yours is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
The center of the universe is not our spouse. It is God. Our hope in marriage is not in the miniature kingdoms we establish, complete with dinner menus, and family photo shoots each November, but in God, and His kingdom. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer helps me go to the Throne of God and find peace, hope, and assurance of who I am in Christ. It reminds me of how much He loves me. And it lends perspective to the big picture, the amazing story I am a part of. I still worry and complain, don’t get me wrong, but I feel certain I am being changed, and that even in the trenches, and the fearful times, I am His. Amen.
Please feel free to share this marriage prayer with other couples.
