Looking Forward To The Future

Looking Forward To The Future

It was a time when you were not woken up at 4 in the morning by the cry of a newborn baby. It was a time when there were so many new things ahead of you. Hopes, dreams...expectations. So much was possible. It was a time when you were dating or newly married with a new and wonderful road up ahead. You could not wait to begin walking it!

Yet as you have continued walking this road of marriage, the romance of the first moments started to become a little dull. Conflicts, pressures of life and a growing family can make you forget how you started this walk. Often you become so caught up in all of your problems and conflicts that you even forget to look at the wonderful things any longer.

This week I want to take your hand and walk you back down memory lane and then show you a much brighter future. Can you remember the first time you met? Perhaps it was a good time, perhaps not. But can you remember when you first felt that love for your spouse? The person you wanted to be with more than anyone else.

Yes, if you look back a lot has changed. You have changed, your spouse has changed and those memories might seem like wonderful fantasies now. You look at yourself in the mirror and you can tell that you certainly do not look the same way any more. You also know that inside, you are not the same person any more.

Well praise the Lord for that! Can't you see how much you have grown and changed as a couple?

I want you to go back and remember what it was like when you first met. Write down a list of qualities and impressions that you had of your spouse back then. Then fast forward and take a look at the qualities and impression that you have of your spouse right now. Can't you see how much they have changed? Over time can't you see how the two of you have now become one flesh?

Perhaps at the beginning it was all fantastic and you long back for those moments, but what you do not realize is that you are experiencing the greatest romance of your life right now. In fact the more you walk down this road the more wonderful the romance becomes! Why is that? It is because the more you walk this road together, the more you become one in the Lord. The more you know each other, the easier it is to share your heart and have something REAL.

The memories in the past are special to us all, but never forget that you are living the most romantic time of your life RIGHT NOW and...it will only get better. You and your spouse will have many more experiences together. You will learn more about one another each day and as you do, the greater your romance will become.

So remember the past and the special memories, then also hold on to the future, knowing that the best is yet to come. What you had back then was like a little seed that you planted. Yet as you matured, that seed began to flourish and develop into a beautiful rose, with a rich and beautiful fragrance.

Look forward to what is ahead and enjoy the moments you have now, realizing that the Lord has His hand on you and your marriage.

Practical Project

Why not put this lesson into practice!

1. Write down a list of qualities that your spouse had when you first met.

2. Write down a list of qualities that your spouse has now that are different from the beginning.

3. Finally write down one thing that your spouse did this week that you enjoyed, admired or thought was really good.

4. Finally send your spouse your list either by e-mail or on written paper and tell them how much you are looking forward to the future with them!