Episode 12: Loving Our Spouse During the Coronavirus Season

“Finally, we must remember, that the greatest challenge we face in loving our spouse during this season is our own sinful heart. At the end of Matthew 5, Jesus says that it’s most natural for us to always return evil for evil and to only love those who love us. But what makes Christ’s love so miraculous, is that he loved us in the face of wrong, he responded to evil with good. Because of Christ’s love for us in the gospel, Love in the face of wrong demonstrates the love of Christ more than any other display of love I’ve mentioned.”

Family Worship

Family Worship Devotional Download

Open In Prayer

Worship
– Doxology
– Nothing But the Blood of Jesus
– Blessed Assurance

Icebreaker Question: What recently has allowed you to enjoy a good laugh with your significant other?

Devotional
• Passage: Philippians 2:3
• Key idea: The love of Christ allows us to consider our spouse and move toward them
• Application:
o We must count our spouses as more significant than ourselves
 Do I know what relationships and situations look big to my spouse?
 Do I know what voices are influencing my spouse’s heart?
 Do I know what my spouse is longing to do in this season?
 Do I know how my spouse is spiritually encouraged and also tempted currently?
QUARANTINE QUESTIONS FOR COUPLES
o We must move toward our spouse as Christ pursued us
 Create an opportunity for your spouse to do something they enjoy
 Make time in the evening for sharing and praying through daily worries
 Create “shelter-in-place” date nights
 Serve others together
 Say no to busyness to say yes to your marriage time
 Demonstrate Christ’s love in the face of my spouse’s sin

Discussion Questions
• How aware are we of how our relationship is doing in this season?
• What specific steps can we take to pursue the good of our significant other?
• What are some practical ways God can use as a couple to serve our church family?

Ideas for Prayer
• Pray for other couples you know who have been most directly impacted by the virus (e.g. job loss, a spouse is a health care worker, financial insecurities, a spouse is sick, a spouse is immunocompromised)
• Pray that God would use this season of shelter in place to grow his love in the marriages and relationships of Lighthouse.