There’s absolutely no doubt in my mind that many people standing for the restoration of their marriages would be greatly blessed and encouraged, and find it much easier, if they could truly grasp why we stand. So I was thrilled to see the following Heart To Heart message posted by one of the ladies yesterday on the private website. And I know Thursa and Diane won’t mind me sharing what they wrote here, because it is bound to bless and encourage anyone who reads it and understands it. Remember, there is ALWAYS a godly purpose for the stand we’ve taken against the world and the gates of hell for the restoration of our marriages, even if we can’t see or figure out what it is.

Just to use myself as an example to help make the point, if the Lord had not put it in my heart to honor my marriage vows over fifteen years ago now, and then more recently, taught me what it means to stand in faith and obedience on the power and promise of His Word for marriage restoration, FAM Ministries wouldn’t exist today. Do I believe God will ultimately restore my marriage, which certainly looks impossible and totally unlikely in the earthly realm? Yes, I do. Do I know when or how? No, I don’t. But that doesn’t matter, because more important than that is the indescribable joy and blessing God has brought to my life and the lives of countless others as a result of my stand and my willingness to allow the Lord to use my experience and what He has taught me for HIS glory! And as the result of my stand and prayers, I’ve been blessed to see my husband saved, and I’ve actually witnessed the amazing God glorifying changes I longed for being manifested in his life as he grows in his walk and relationship with the Lord. And now he has a powerful testimony of restoration and renewal of his own, which I have no doubt the Lord always intended to be a powerful weapon against the wicked works of the devil too. And in just the past two months, we’ve seen five FAM Fellowship members’ marriages restored, and now we’re being blessed to witness the amazing work of full and complete renewal and restoration, as the Lord’s plan is fully manifested in their husbands as well. And we’ll never know the full impact of their restored marriages, because it will go on for generations as a result of the effect it will have on their ten children…and their children after them!

So we really need to get it…our stand for marriage restoration IS NOT ABOUT US! It’s ALL a matter of fulfilling God’s divine purpose for our lives, which is always for the praise, honor and glory of Jesus Christ. And as Thursa so eloquently states, NO ONE ELSE CAN FULFILL THAT PLAN BUT US! So instead of thinking of our stand for the restoration of our marriages in terms of ourselves, we need to be a whole lot more focused on God’s purpose and what HE wants to accomplish by it. And many times that includes the salvation of our mates, and even our children; not to mention how our stand and testimony will be used to impact the lives of everyone around us. Just remember that the more impossible and hopeless the restoration of our marriage looks, the greater the opportunity for God’s glory! And that’s EXACTLY what Jesus was saying in Matthew 19:26, which says Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” So instead of thinking it can’t be done, we need to realize that God HAS called us for such a time as this for that very purpose, and because there’s something that ONLY we can do for His glory! So we need to learn to praise God for the more impossible our circumstances look instead of crying and being discouraged by them; because God has specifically chosen us to bring even more glory To His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, and He equips us with EVERYTHING we need to walk out His plan right into the victorious restoration of our marriages. So get that and be blessed and encouraged!

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 1 Peter 2:9

I’ve been reading a book by Linda Dillow called Calm My Anxious Heart. And a couple of days ago, I read part of it that really put a familiar thought in a different light for me. Here are the paragraphs:

“How does this apply to us? It means that the Almighty Creator of the universe prepared a purpose for us to walk in. God acted with definite purpose when He created you because He had a plan for you to fulfill. How loved and unique you are! All of your abilities – and your disabilities – were created to fit the unique plan God has for you. No one can fulfill your purpose but you. And God’s plan for you and His plan for me embrace far more than the events or circumstances that happen to us. They also embrace what God wants us to be and do and what He desires to do in and through us.

In his book Trusting God Even When It Hurts, Jerry Bridges says that verses 13-16 of Psalm 139 must be taken as a unit.
God created our inmost being and fashioned us in our mother’s womb so that we might be equipped to fulfill the plan that He set out for us even before we were born. Who you are is not a biological accident. What you are is not a circumstantial accident. God planned both for you.

According to Ephesians 2:10, you and I “are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” When I’m not pleased with the talents, gifts, and abilities God gave me, I remind myself that He is the Blessed Controller of all things (1 Timothy 6:15). If I believe this, I also must believe that God is the Blessed Controller of my “all things”…my appearance, my personality, and my gifts and talents. In my heart of hearts I long to please God, and it pleases Him when I am content with how He created me.”

I think most of us know and realize that God has always had a plan for us, including being chosen by Him to stand for marriage restoration. But after reading this portion of the book, the concept was really brought home to me; NO ONE can fulfill my purpose but me…WOW! Putting that into application in our marriage; NO ONE can fulfill my purpose of being SNO’s (spouse name omitted)life mate, the one that God made a tri-fold bond with when He witnessed our marriage vows. And now, my role in the plan has changed from being wife to that of being a wife standing in the gap for my husband and our marriage. God chose ME for that role and NO ONE else can fulfill the purpose God has for me to stand for my marriage…NO ONE! God ALWAYS knew His plan for me to become a stander; He brought about all the circumstances prior to this time in my life, so I would be prepared and know how to stand as part of His life plan for me! So you see how He chose us to stand as part of our life plan, and how NO ONE else can fulfill that purpose? Wow, I’m just in awe. I don’t know if it connects as much with you as me right now, but I am just blown away! Every single circumstance that occurs, God has already taken the time, energy and LOVE to think through my plan and your plan. NO ONE else can fill the divine shoes God constructed just for us!!! AND NO ONE else pleases God and makes Him smile with our love, obedience and praise but US! So let’s put a smile on our faces and a kick in our steps, because we’re walking out the plan God cared enough to make just for us!!!

Response by Diane on July 3rd, 2007 at 11:05 pm
Amen, Thursa, it has such an impact when you look at it that way. God picked us and He had faith in us and no one else. We can do this, because God knows we can and that is all I need. God could have picked someone else for this job and SNO’s wife, but He didn’t; He picked me. That is big and I will walk out the plan God chose for me. Thanks for this. Diane

Posted Wednesday, July 4th, 2007 at 11:11 am in Seeds Of Faith.