It is one of the most important habits that any married couple can form. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most rare. For a husband and wife to live well together before the Lord, they must pray together. For a couple to honor God in their marriage, they must be as intimate spiritually as they are physically. At times it can be difficult to know what to pray or how to pray. This prayer by George Swinnock is a wonderful model of a prayer a couple can (and perhaps should) pray together.

Lord, who are the guide of all relationships, may our marriage befit those married to the Lord Christ. Like Abraham and Sarah, may we be famous for faith; like Isaac and Rebecca, may we live in dearest love; like Zachariah and Elizabeth, may our walk be blameless.
May the meditation of each other’s frailty spur us to greater fidelity. May you be our guide, and Scripture our compass. Whatever stony paths we walk on earth, may we enjoy a comforting sunshine from heaven. And since you have tied this knot between us, may we do nothing which might loosen it through angry thoughts or quarrelsome deeds.
May our thoughts of each other be sweetened with love; may our words to each other be seasoned with love; and may our actions towards each other be given a relish and savour by love.
May love be the strength with which we bear one another’s burdens. May love be the mantle with which we cover one another’s infirmities. And may love be the fire which consumes opposition between us! May we cleave close to one another in our affections as those who are bound together by God himself.
As those who are equal sharers in gains and losses, may we stand and fall together, not wasting wealth through our extravagance but concerned for the needs of the other. Let us be more tender of each other’s reputation than of our own. And may we imitate your Majesty in covering and forgiving one another’s infirmities.
May we conspire for each other’s welfare, and carry domestic burdens on both our shoulders, joining together to bear personal hardships. As fellow-travellers through life, may we cheer up one another to make our journey more pleasant, until we come to rest in the true paradise!
We pray, above all, that with great faithfulness, we may serve each other’s souls, conspiring together to walk in step with the Spirit, praying, and fasting and reading together. Let us take sweet counsel together, that our house may be a Bethel, “a House of God”.
Enable us, Lord, as husband and wife to shine like the sun and moon, and our children as stars, so gloriously and powerfully with the light of holiness, that our house may be your lesser heaven.
George Swinnock as quoted in Into His Presence. I have slightly adapted and truncated it.

This weeks giveaway is sponsored by Help The Persecuted.
Help The Persecuted rescues, restores, and rebuilds the lives of persecuted believers in the Islamic World through spiritual support and tangible help. Every week, they send out an email with specific, real-time prayer requests of persecuted believers to their global Prayer Network.
You can join the Prayer Network using the form below! As a thank you, you will be entered to win a giveaway consisting of several books loved by the Help The Persecuted team, items made my persecuted believers in Lebanon and Iran, and a Help The Persecuted hat!
Included in the giveaway are:
Everything Sad is Untrue (a true story) by Daniel Nayeri
A winner of multiple awards, Everything Sad is Untrue (a true story), recounts the early years of the author’s life in Iran, the saga of religious persecution his family faced when his mother converted to Christianity, and his time as a refugee in Italy and then asylum in the United States. The book, written for young adults but compelling to all ages, is both heartbreaking and funny, and it highlights the worthiness of Christ even when one loses everything to follow Him.
Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus by Nabeel Qureshi
Nabeel Qureshi grew up in a devout Muslim family. Well-versed in Islam apologetics, he frequently challenged his Christian friends. When one of them casually suggested they read the Bible together, Nabeel was happy to do so to prove the superiority of Islam. However, he ended up falling in love with Jesus Christ! His story highlights the intense inner struggle of a committed Muslim to seek the truth at all costs and the immense emotional weight of converting to Christianity.
A cross and tote bag made by persecuted believers
One of the cornerstones of Help The Persecuted is helping persecuted believers achieve sustainable economic independence after losing everything for the sake of Jesus. One of the ways we do this is by working with believers to create their own business plans and providing seed funding. In the giveaway, we will include a small cross carved from olive wood in Lebanon and a tote bag sewn together by persecuted women in Iran—each representing a business that is helping persecuted believers lead lives of dignity!
A Help The Persecuted hat
To round out the giveaway, we will include a Help The Persecuted ballcap!

Thank you for joining the Help The Persecuted Prayer Network!

We are digging out after a massive snowstorm yesterday–possibly the biggest I’ve ever seen around these parts. These blizzards never quite lose their wonder…

Today’s Kindle deals include a few books that are worth a look.
(Yesterday on the blog: What Does It Mean To Trust God in Our Trials?)
The Breath of God
Interestingly, I found two articles yesterday that focused on the same theme: the breath of God. “Breathe on us, O Lord, and in us. Breathe love. Breathe hope. Breathe courage into us who walk in the shadows of fear. Breathe joy into us who calibrate our existence by disappointment.”
The Breath of the Lion
And here’s the second: “But this morning, even as we are still feeling sick from Covid, I find myself longing for the breath of God. I find myself fighting to fleshly urge to flee from him into busyness or productivity, intentionally training myself to linger in his presence.”
The Reformation Study Bible, Student Edition
Ligonier Ministries recently released an edition of their popular Reformation Study Bible with many new features for students and young adults. This week, you can use code CHALLIES in the Ligonier store to save an extra 5% on the Reformation Study Bible, Student Edition in any cover style or color. (Sponsored Link)
Losing a Child
This is a brief interview with Christian musician TobyMac whose son passed away a couple of years ago. He offers some very helpful thoughts about loss.
Peace in Acceptance
Sarah reflects on acceptance. “‘Peace and joy begin with acceptance.’ And God’s been providing many lessons in the classroom of ‘acceptance’ lately. Not ‘resignation’, but ‘acceptance. Resignation connotates giving up and laying down in defeat, whereas acceptance connotates believing and trusting that the One who does have control is good and trustworthy, even when I can’t see it in the moment.”
When Everyone Plays His Part
“We all have a tendency to look at what is most celebrated and to aspire after it.” Yet, as Nick Batzig says here, joy comes when each of us plays the part God has assigned us.
Flashback: Don’t Drop the Rock!
Sin is never simple. Sin is never harmless. Sin is always selfish, always an occasion of harm not only to the sinner but to the whole church.

Nagging and scolding never yet made anybody godly! Constant pointing out of blemishes never cured anyone of his blemishes! —J.R. Miller