Practice the Pause
Practice the Pause The garage door slams hard enough to rattle the kitchen cabinets. “What happened to picking up Jake?” Mark says as he thows his keys on the counter. Lisa looks up from the stove. “What are you talking about?” “Soccer practice ended at five. I just got a call from the coach asking […]
The Subtle Shift from We to Me
Love is an action not a feeling I Corinthians 13 #7 It’s Thursday night. The kitchen is still messy from dinner. Jason drops onto the couch and exhales. “I had back-to-back meetings all day. I’m wiped.” Emily stands at the sink, scrubbing a pan. “Must be nice to sit down,” she says quietly. “I’ve been […]
Love Doesn’t Humiliate: Choosing Honor in Marriage
Love Doesn’t Humiliate Love is an action not a feeling…part 6. Scripture Focus “Love does not dishonor others…” (1 Corinthians 13:5) Scene: <Sunday outside church> People are milling around after service. Couples are chatting. Someone asks a casual question. Friend: “So how’s your week been?” Sandy: (Smiles) “Busy, but good. We’re trying to get the house back […]
Pride Proof Love
Pride Proof Love Love is an Action not a Feeling (5) Love Is Not Proud Scripture Focus “Love is not proud…” (1 Corinthians 13:4) Sue shared something tender with her husband, Steve, one evening. She wasn’t attacking—just opening her heart. “I felt really alone today,” she said. “I needed you, and it felt like you […]
Love Does Not Boast: Choosing Humility Over Recognition
Love is an Action not a Feeling (Part4) When comparison fades, the need to prove ourselves often surfaces. This devotional explores how love lets go of self-promotion, choosing humility and quiet faithfulness instead. It invites couples to love without needing recognition. Love Does Not Boast “Love does not boast…” (1 Corinthians 13:4) Scene: <Saturday morning in the kitchen.> Mark is meticulously arranging […]
Love Does Not Envy
As love becomes patient and kind, comparison begins to lose its grip. This third devotional in our series addresses one of the quiet disruptors of intimacy—envy—and invites couples to move from competition to celebration. Let’s take a look at … Love Does Not Envy “Love does not envy…” (1 Corinthians 13:4) Here’s a story from […]
Love is an Action…not a Feeling (Part 2)
We’re in the second edition of a 15 week devotion series on the loving ‘actions’ that Paul tells us define love in I Corinthians 13:4-8. Patience was our first action. It creates a space that kindness fills. After learning to stay present and patient when things are moving slowly in your marriage … love moves […]
Love is an Action…not a Feeling
Someone has said that: “Love is the feeling that you feel when you are about to feel a feeling that you’ve never felt before!” Cute phrase … and it validates that we’re inundated with the lie that love is just a feeling. But it is so much more! Those loving feelings come from loving actions […]
Ten Minutes Can Make a Difference in your Marriage
Many couples struggle with developing a regular devotional time together. I believe spiritual intimacy is one of the most challenging intimacies to build in a relationship. If you’re like me, you feel a sense of despair because we constantly hear that we should pray more, read the Bible more, etc – but we don’t know […]
Marriage Resolutions
It’s that time of year again where we all sit down and set those infamous New Year’s resolutions. You all know the regulars…let’s lose 10 pounds, read one book a week, save 10% of our paycheck. The problem is that these are resolved today and abandoned by the end of the week. So this year, how […]