Praying Together When You Don't Feel Like It

[00:00:15] Speaker A: Catch us little foxes. They're feasting on our own. And just like that, we are back. [00:00:27] Speaker B: Hello, everyone. How is everyone? How are you, young lady? [00:00:33] Speaker A: I was waiting for them to answer. [00:00:36] Speaker B: And how are you, ma'? Am? [00:00:37] Speaker A: I'm great. How are you doing? [00:00:39] Speaker B: Good. [00:00:39] Speaker A: And what was your name again? [00:00:41] Speaker B: My name is Miguel, Senor Williams. Michael Williams. [00:00:45] Speaker A: Okay. And mine is Shanna Williams. And this is the Marriage Altar podcast, Episode nine. [00:00:52] Speaker B: Episode nine. Lucky number nine. [00:00:54] Speaker A: So, yeah, we've had a fun little week. [00:00:58] Speaker B: It has been eventful. [00:00:59] Speaker A: It's been one of those weeks that you're like, that week. Did this week ever end fast enough? [00:01:06] Speaker B: I have been in war since, what, Monday at least maybe before full combat. Battle rattle and everything, man. [00:01:13] Speaker A: Right. [00:01:13] Speaker B: It was a trip. [00:01:15] Speaker A: Yeah. We just had a lot going on. We've had what a work stuff, what a home stuff. [00:01:20] Speaker B: And. Yeah. [00:01:21] Speaker A: So, you know, it's interesting because today, what kind of weaves into that is talking about praying together. When you don't feel like it, That's. [00:01:31] Speaker B: A very important topic. [00:01:32] Speaker A: When you feel like you don't have time, that's one of the most important. [00:01:35] Speaker B: Things you can do as a couple. [00:01:38] Speaker A: Yeah, it is. But how many people don't? [00:01:40] Speaker B: Oh, well, you know, now if you go. If you're gonna go with the man side of that, you know, I wake up and I just got things on my mind. [00:01:47] Speaker A: I don't think a lot of people think it's important to pray as a couple. [00:01:53] Speaker B: I think as long as their prayers. [00:01:54] Speaker A: Are heard, that's all right. And I think that we learned the hard way because I think one of the strategies God's given us and the reason we started the Marriage All Fair podcast was because God showed us. I think every marriage ministry out there is going to have some kind of platform or teaching that's kind of like, hey, this is our signature thing. Ours is. Ours is. Hey, prayer. Like, this is where God started with us. And he was like, okay. Even before everything came out, even before I knew about what had happened with you or your addiction and the PTSD and all that. He had already put it on my heart to start. I asked you, can we start praying together in the morning? And I was really surprised that you. You were like, yeah, yeah. [00:02:45] Speaker B: I think, you know, I really shared with the Lord around that time, my relationship with the Lord around that time. [00:02:50] Speaker A: Which was about a year ago, right? [00:02:52] Speaker B: Yeah, almost a year ago. Even before that, it was pretty much just non existent. You know, I'd wake up, I'd call myself a Christian, I'd Take a shower, and I'd go to work. I'd come home and take another shower and go to bed, you know, And I never really thought about the God in between there. I was always just on go mode, doing my own thing. [00:03:11] Speaker A: I think that's kind of the quintessential, you know, cowboy Christianity in this area. I don't know how else to say it, but it's kind of like this, hey, yeah, I believe in God thing, But a lot of people are like, yeah, but it's just a compartment of my life, and I don't really pray or anything, but I believe he's there. [00:03:32] Speaker B: Well, you know, men are hardwired or work, and if we don't plan it out, it's not gonna get done. [00:03:39] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:03:40] Speaker B: To be honest with you, it's another. [00:03:41] Speaker A: Box that you have to check off. [00:03:42] Speaker B: Another box you have to check off. And, you know, I used to just fight my way by saying, well, you know, the Lord knows my heart. He knows what I need. He knows where I stand with him. And that's just gonna be quite good enough. Thank you very much. [00:03:56] Speaker A: But you're like, yeah, I'm saved. What else do I need to do here? Like, I already said the sinner's prayer. That's, you know. [00:04:02] Speaker B: Yeah. But after everything went down in September last year, then it was almost like my eyes were open, you know, once I had the spirit in me. And I'm gonna tell you guys, I spoke tongues, and it was weird. [00:04:15] Speaker A: Let's do a whole episode on that. I think we'll probably lose the five people that we do have. [00:04:19] Speaker B: Yeah, we got five. Hey, we are up to five subscribers. [00:04:22] Speaker A: No, no, no, no. I think we're almost at 500 listens so far, which is. Right. We're gonna take over, man. [00:04:31] Speaker B: I'm almost said, watch out, Howard Stern, but never mind. That's not a good one to compare us to. [00:04:36] Speaker A: Cut that out. Anyways, but. So last year around, I would say it was probably July. I woke up that morning. I think I've told this a little bit before, but I just want to bring it back out, because it's the whole reason that we're doing this. I had this moment where, you know, like, now, you know, because the Holy Spirit is in you, and, you know, when he tells you something, it almost arrested me. And it was not that I wasn't. I didn't even wake up thinking about it. I walked into the living room, and when I opened my mouth to talk to you, it came out. That's how I knew it was God. Because I didn't even have a minute to really think. I mean, it was like 6:30 in the morning. I hadn't even had a prayer. [00:05:16] Speaker B: I was praying. Can we pray together? Is that what that was? [00:05:18] Speaker A: Yeah, I said, can we pray together? Can we start praying together in the mornings? And you were like, yeah. And then, you know, I knew that you were already. You were already a guy who liked to study the scripture. You like to study the Bible, you like. We like to read books together and talk about them. [00:05:34] Speaker B: Right. [00:05:35] Speaker A: So I already knew you were cool with that because for you, it's just like digging around in here trying to get some facts or whatever. But it was more than that. I felt like the Lord was like, no, you guys need to come to me together and pray to me as one. And I think that's the element that makes our marriage work. And that was where it started, was when God started to do that. Because we started to ask him specific things, like, God, I remember you praying this. God, if there's anything in this house that needs to be moved out, we just cast anything out that's not of you. Any spirits in this house. And you're like. I mean, you look back now you pass myself out. What are you doing here? You know what I mean? Do you remember saying that? [00:06:24] Speaker B: Yeah, I just didn't know if there was like, you know, an object in the home that was doing something or something like that. But then the more I thought, I was like, well, heck, that's me, that's me. So, yeah, thankfully God didn't banish me to the wastelands or anything like that. [00:06:38] Speaker A: Yeah. Because it was two. It was. I would say it was a good solid two months of us praying before the whole thing happened. And I'm wondering if the prayers didn't initiate it. [00:06:49] Speaker B: Oh, I'm sure it did. Because, you know, we also stake the house out. [00:06:52] Speaker A: Yes, we stake the house out. [00:06:53] Speaker B: And you can't put a bubble around your property with stakes and then expect the evil that you bring into it every day. Not. [00:06:59] Speaker A: Yeah, we were like. The scriptures were about like the angels, you know, being around the property, the spirit of God and just protection and all these things and maybe go around. [00:07:10] Speaker B: And write some more verses on them. [00:07:12] Speaker A: I think we need to write them out, you know what I mean? Like on a board or. I don't know, like on a piece of metal. I don't even know how to do it anyway. That'd be something you could. [00:07:20] Speaker B: Oh, yeah. Well, there we go. [00:07:21] Speaker A: But it's almost like when we did that, and I'm a firm believer of it now. And people are like, that's so like, I don't know, hokey or I don't even know what the word is, you know, like, really, these scriptures, is this really gonna work? Yeah, right? [00:07:34] Speaker B: Yeah, they will because they work for us. And yeah, it does seem a little hokey at first. I ain't gonna lie to you. It really did seem like, okay, this is kind of like nothing against Pentecostals. This is kind of a Pentecostal thing going on in my home. And I was raised on Baptist, right? You know, we didn't speak out in church. We said so coming from that setting to no religion at all or no. No church at all, to all of a sudden being inside of a spirit filled church was like, what in the world is going on? [00:08:07] Speaker A: It wasn't just the spirit filled church. It was spirit filled home. The home. I think you were. You didn't know how to take somebody who was actually like, not just saying they're a Christian, but I was actually a Christian, right? And it was probably like a what? Like, I don't know if I signed up for this. [00:08:21] Speaker B: Like, she's weird, you know, I can't compete with that. You know, I'm watching you guys turn y'. All. Some of y' all things you have with your friends at the house and at other houses and y' all on the floor wailing and crying. [00:08:31] Speaker A: I'm like, I don't feel that's. They're crazy. [00:08:35] Speaker B: The last house we lived in, I took shelter behind the couch. I did. I sat in a little. Remember I was sitting in that chair. [00:08:42] Speaker A: And you're like, can you come around here? [00:08:44] Speaker B: And I'm like, good, man. I'm not doing that right now. But then after I had my conversion and judgment by the Lord and everything came in, then I welcomed it and now it's not so weird anymore. [00:08:56] Speaker A: I think we could have a whole episode on what you just said. You know, the. Then the thing happened, got exposed. There was a judgment buried from the Lord. And then now it's. You know what I mean? Because I think that could be misconstrued by some people. Like, what do you mean by that? So. But I think what opened the door, I just. I know it in my heart that it was those two things together. The word of God is so powerful. And we literally surrounded our entire property. We went around. We have about three and a half breakers or something like that. So we went around all the corners and we drove them In. I actually have videos of you doing this because I posted it on my ministry page that day on Facebook, and I was like, we're putting our. We're staking on our property for the glory of God. And then we were also doing this praying, and we were going to church. We had. I think at that time, we had started Rose Heights. [00:09:46] Speaker B: No, you're right. You're right. [00:09:48] Speaker A: We did. We had started at Rose Heights, and we were enjoying it, and we were just feeling like, although things were stressful, I was feeling like we had turned a corner. You know what I mean? Like, spiritually, I had no idea the turmoil. I think that when we did that, it started. Triggered that really strong wrestling that you had in your spirit, because now you have the Holy Spirit involved in it, and he's probably convicting you like crazy. [00:10:16] Speaker B: Well, I was. I was isolated. I was forced to come. I couldn't run away. I had nowhere to go. [00:10:23] Speaker A: So did it quiet for you in that. Those two months that we started praying? [00:10:27] Speaker B: Yeah, the attacks happened, got worse. But then also the Holy Spirit, you know, that the spiritual God, you're not worthy of this. God didn't really like you. She's like, you know. But then the more that we prayed, the more that we had our morning time together. Prayed, we read. Prayed, we read something to click. And I don't know. I'm trying to put exact date on when it clicked me. It may have been. It may have been when I spoke tongues. I don't know. But something. [00:10:55] Speaker A: Well, that was back in March this year, so this would have been before that. [00:10:59] Speaker B: I can't remember what clicked, but all of a sudden I was full of the Holy Spirit and Trastias, maybe. No, it was way before Tristias. [00:11:07] Speaker A: Well, after you came home, we had some encounter. We prayed, and you were like. You were, like, caught up in the spirit. And I wasn't even in the room anymore with you. Like, you were somewhere else and you came back and you were like, I don't know where I was, but I was like, not in this room. Yeah, that was probably like October. [00:11:24] Speaker B: It was. Trace Pierce is available in most states. I guess you're listening. In Texas, they have one in. [00:11:33] Speaker A: Lone Star. [00:11:34] Speaker B: Lone Star, Yeah. One in Lone Star. They also have a couple in San Antonio and Houston. [00:11:38] Speaker A: Yeah, but you have to be. That's a whole other thing. You have to be invited. We can't talk about it and stuff like that. [00:11:43] Speaker B: Can't say anything about it. It just gets better. [00:11:46] Speaker A: So we are, you know, obviously, we know that prayer is so powerful. But what happens when the last thing that you want to do is pray together? Especially when either as last week we talked about, okay, how do we talk to each other without tearing each other apart? Because I think we had a little bit of that going on this week, too, in our house. [00:12:06] Speaker B: We do have a lot going on. [00:12:07] Speaker A: So how do you pray when you've had a week frustration or you're exhausted or you've been miscommunicating or been mean to each other because you don't feel like praying? When you're in that. [00:12:18] Speaker B: I like it. I think the one thing that you and I realize that even when we don't want to pray, God's still in the room. And the enemy is trying to keep us from having that close personal relationship with the Lord because he knows that's the only thing that's kept us together. You know, was God his mercy and his love and. And his intervention. [00:12:41] Speaker A: His intervention. [00:12:42] Speaker B: That's the only thing that really kept us together. It would not have happened had we not started praying for it. [00:12:48] Speaker A: And I think it's important to say that you need your own personal time of prayer with the Lord by yourself. But there's something so special about coming as a couple to God because of. I don't know what it is, but we're saying together as one because we are one. He joined us together. We're coming in complete unity. And I think that's what it is. It's the unity. And he's like, okay, you both want me in this, I'm here. But only one. [00:13:16] Speaker B: Better rearrange the house a little bit. [00:13:19] Speaker A: And it sucks when you're the only one doing it. I know what that feels like, too. But if you are the only one doing it, let's just say your spouse is not on board. I'm telling you, you just keep lifting it up to the Lord. If you are the one, stay in a place of humility. Stay in a place of kindness and love toward your spouse. Don't tell them the way. Show them the way. I think I use that concept when I write things. I don't tell you. I show you by. By living it. Or I give you a story, or I'm like, living it in front of you. That's so much more powerful than me telling you all the time, you need to be praying, you need to be coming here, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, like, I don't know, a man that likes to be cold, that kind of stuff. Right. [00:14:01] Speaker B: You know, it still does. But at the same time, I know that coming from a pure heart. And you say, hey, we pray. I know what you mean. Well, and you trust me and I trust you. [00:14:10] Speaker A: So that's huge. A lot of people don't trust each other in their marriage. So when you're telling them to come pray, it's just ticking them off. So that's a whole other episode, I think. But I'm just saying, if your spouse is willing, I'm telling you, one of the best things you can do is going to be to pray together. [00:14:28] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:14:30] Speaker A: Coming in unity. But we're talking about. So how do you do that whenever you don't feel like it? So I think it's a choice, just like anything else is that we do. [00:14:40] Speaker B: You have to force yourself. You know, sometimes that doesn't even work. But you have to. If there's coming day where you and I wake up and we're. You have bad dreams, I have bad dreams. We're just kind of. But then I think during those times, the Holy Spirit. We had to let the Holy Spirit come in and let it guide us. Because if we try to keep it up to our flesh. I'm gonna go outside, work in the shop, and you're gonna be in your office working on your stuff, and it's not gonna get done. [00:15:13] Speaker A: And three or four days go by, and we're like, what is wrong with us? Why do we feel like we're in such a funky place? We haven't prayed. We haven't invited him in. You know, we haven't been disciplined enough to. To do that. I think that. Here's what I see in the church today. People are saying, if you're disciplined and you're religious. Well, no, not necessarily. You need to have. You need to cultivate a life of prayer. And you know what? There's nothing wrong with saying every morning, this is when we pray, every evening, this is when we pray. It's okay to create that rhythm in that space. And I think God honors that. [00:15:51] Speaker B: Yep. I totally agree with you. I think that he appreciates us doing the effort to come in and, you know, sometimes he'll allow us to be tested like that just to see where we're at spiritually. Even though he's God and he already knows, he wants us to see where we're at so that we can work harder in this area or in this area. You know, just make sure that we're well prayed up. [00:16:13] Speaker A: Yeah. I mean, we can't do anything disconnected from Him. But I think sometimes we're so dumb that we actually Think we can. I got this one. God. I don't really need you to help me. I'm strong in this area. And then the whole thing falls apart. And you really don't want that, especially in your marriage. But I think there's barriers. So, like, why does it feel so hard sometimes? Why do you think it feels hard to pray together? [00:16:38] Speaker B: I think sometimes it's hurt feeling. I think sometimes it's like, hanging on to. There's a lingering tension after an argument, or I don't call them arguments because we don't yell at each other anymore. [00:16:50] Speaker A: Disagreement. [00:16:51] Speaker B: Just. We have disagreements and, you know, we don't. We don't do that yelling. We don't fight like cats and dogs. But I think we talked about that last tension. I think the tension after an argument really dictates the atmosphere in the home. [00:17:07] Speaker A: I will tell you something about women that you probably already know. [00:17:10] Speaker B: Oh, my goodness. [00:17:11] Speaker A: Okay. So, like, we can argue with you. And I will stay in my feelings for two or three days after it. Even though. Even though it's gone and we made up or whatever, quote unquote, I'm still a little bit. You know what I mean? A little bit of a mean person and just kind of like, get away from me, you know? I mean, I could do that for a couple days until I get my emotions back in line. So I can see that with women, because, like, the last thing I want to do is if you pick me off, I don't want to come in there and pray with you. You know what I mean? I've got to get. [00:17:50] Speaker B: We have a knockdown drag out. Okay, let's pray. [00:17:52] Speaker A: Yeah. And you could do it. You're fine. But I'm like, no, I'm not. You know, and I have to, like, surrender, and I have to submit and humble myself before the Lord and just say, okay, Lord, help me, because, like, I'm sick. Like, I don't know how to work through this. But I do think that, like you said, a lot of it's tension in the marriage already. [00:18:10] Speaker B: Right. And then you add that extra effect of all the negative energy that you put into the room during an argument or a disagreement, and that hangs around. That doesn't go anywhere. [00:18:19] Speaker A: Well, I think that's. I think what that. Spiritually, what you're saying is then probably the spiritual aspect of the demonic spirit that maybe you invited in because you went there. [00:18:32] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:18:34] Speaker A: Like, you can. You can definitely invite that spirit. And that's such a good thing to say, because how many things are you inviting into Your home. Because you guys are watching things you should watch. We know that for a fact. [00:18:45] Speaker B: We know that for a fact. [00:18:47] Speaker A: And then all of a sudden your house is tense and you guys are fine and you're like, why? Well, you just watched Dateline for 14 hours straight and the wife killed the husband, or he killed her. He was having an affair with this woman and then she killed this person. You know what I mean? Like, why would she. [00:19:02] Speaker B: Right. That's right. Why would you watch this for 14 straight hours? I know I would leave for work on a Saturday morning and you weren't quite up yet. I mean, I left the house at 4 o', clock, but then I come home that evening, you're laying on the couch watching tv. I talk to you throughout the day, and you're watching tv and I'm like, what are you watching? Oh, Dateline. It's like the 35th episode. [00:19:23] Speaker A: Are you getting ideas on how to kill me in my sleep? [00:19:26] Speaker B: Well, you know, it doesn't. My husband. Paranoid. [00:19:28] Speaker A: Yeah. So, okay, yes, we know that's tension in the relationship, but also, don't you think just the ridiculous busyness, the exhaustion that we're under. [00:19:39] Speaker B: With exhaustion, you get adrenal overload, adrenal fatigue, and that causes anxiety. And then you've got to deal with your anxiety. You got to deal with your adrenal fatigue. You just don't have the energy. [00:19:52] Speaker A: Yeah. And I think you're in fight or flight. So, like, how are you going to pray when you're, you're, you know, off the charts at number 12 on the anxiety chart? Like, you have been this week, all week. And that's probably why we didn't pray all week. And your anxiety was giving me anxiety. [00:20:08] Speaker B: Right. [00:20:08] Speaker A: So it was a rough weekend. I think we missed like three or four days of praying. [00:20:13] Speaker B: And we ate bad. We ate like Mexican food. I had hamburgers twice. [00:20:17] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, me too. [00:20:19] Speaker B: So, yeah, it was. I took full advantage of the fatness that was going on around the house, and I indulged in it for sure. [00:20:26] Speaker A: And then we feel terrible, and then we just can't sleep well. And it's just like this domino effect. And I'm thinking, like, what if we actually got up, prayed the way we're supposed to, sought the Lord together, read our Bibles, talked about scripture, drank our coffee, ate healthy and cultivated that rhythm instead of the chaos of waking up, jumping right into work, dealing with all the catastrophe that's going on around us, you know, because that's not working well for us. [00:20:56] Speaker B: No, it's not. It's not working well for us. And that goes into busyness too. [00:21:01] Speaker A: Yeah. And sometimes you can't help it, but sometimes you can. I think you have to take control of it, you know? [00:21:06] Speaker B: Yeah. I wake up automatically in flight mode or flight mode. [00:21:09] Speaker A: And that's probably from your. [00:21:10] Speaker B: And that's from all the other stuff. But when I wake up, I've got something on my mind that I've got to do. I'm gonna go do it. And if you don't pull back the reins, they hold on, horsey. We're gonna. We gotta pray and read first. [00:21:22] Speaker A: I'm that way too. [00:21:23] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:21:23] Speaker A: Because it's just sitting there. Like, I know I need to do it and I can't think about anything else until I do it. [00:21:28] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:21:29] Speaker A: But I'm. I've really tried to quiet myself and become still before the Lord. And it's hard because I'm like, I think I have ADHD because I can't be still. Like, I'm just. I'm thinking about what I need to do. Lord, I'm really trying, you know, But I think we're getting better at it. [00:21:47] Speaker B: I think we are. I don't think we're a lost cause or anything. You know, I think that we've gotten a lot better through our relationship and prayer with Jesus, you know, And I'm not knocking this over heads of anybody out there. You know, I'm just telling you what works for us. And if it hadn't been for our continuous prayers or your continuous prayers and then me jumping in later, I don't think we'd be here right now. [00:22:15] Speaker A: Yeah, I agree. And I will say this. There's a way to pray. There's a way not to pray. [00:22:21] Speaker B: Right. We learned that the hard way. [00:22:23] Speaker A: And you learn. You learn how to listen to the Holy Spirit and where is he? Where is he taking this to pray? Like, that's sometimes in the morning when you and I pray, you go first. When I come behind you to pray, I might sit there a couple minutes before saying things because I'm waiting for the Holy Spirit. I'm giving him time to answer me or him to direct me because I don't want to just bust off into it. [00:22:47] Speaker B: Right. [00:22:48] Speaker A: And pray amiss. There's actually. You can do that. Scripture talks about, you know, you ask for these things and you pray amiss because you ask with wrong motive. I think it's in James. And so I'm always like, okay, Holy Spirit, it doesn't do me any good to pray if I'M praying it's not the will of God. [00:23:05] Speaker B: Right. [00:23:05] Speaker A: So knowing the will of God, before you pray, you can always pray the Scriptures. You're always pretty safe to do that. [00:23:11] Speaker B: You know, I think just taking a moment before you initially go into it, like, we read. You know, we read first. We'll read the books that we're into, and then we'll read the Bible last. Right now we're in Revelation, and I love that book, but at the same time, it terrifies the Jesus out of it. But I think us reading and then reading the Bible right before we pray kind of set. Kind of gives us the mindset. [00:23:37] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:23:38] Speaker B: It helps us just kind of pause, get over our sleep hangover and, you know, get that first cup of coffee going. [00:23:43] Speaker A: It takes time to get into the presence of God. I think that people don't realize that. You know, have you ever been in a church service or worship service? And those first couple songs, man, you're like, dude, I'm. You're in a different world. Like, you can't even engage. And then usually by like, three. [00:23:59] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:24:00] Speaker A: If it's. If I feel if the Lord's there. Okay. If he's, like, really in the. In the room, all of a sudden there's a breakthrough. And I think it's the same thing with this. It's. It's a. Okay, you. You are engaging. Okay. Just like how. When. I don't know how to say this. When Daniel's praying, it takes the angels 21 days. I think there's that, you know, third heaven situation, second heaven situation, where the warfare is, and you're trying to get your prayers up, but you may not hear the answer, even though God is there and he's. He is saying something. You can't hear it yet. [00:24:32] Speaker B: Well, you know, in the book of Daniel, when he was praying for the answer to. I think it's Nebuchadnezzar's dream. It took him 21 days to answer. [00:24:42] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:24:42] Speaker B: Just to get the answer. But he also. The angel also told Daniel that your answer. It was immediately answered. But we had to fight the Principality Babylon. You know, the Prince of Babylon came up against him. Can you imagine fighting? [00:24:55] Speaker A: I think he even said he had to have help from Michael. Yeah, they were both fighting. I mean, that's. [00:25:01] Speaker B: Michael came and took over so Gabriel could go down. [00:25:03] Speaker A: And he's fasting. Yeah, Daniel's fasting and praying for 21 days. [00:25:09] Speaker B: I did four and a half. [00:25:10] Speaker A: And I think. Right. And we think, oh, I prayed for five minutes and I didn't hear God. [00:25:14] Speaker B: So I got up, you know, we're so weak. [00:25:18] Speaker A: I'm sacrificing so much here, Lord, I'm praying and you're not really. Are you really? But anyway, so I think that that's. That, you know those days where you just feel spiritually off? Like, sometimes that happens. Like, I have felt spiritually off for probably a week now. [00:25:35] Speaker B: Yeah. There's been some times where you just don't feel like. You know, there's some times when you're removed or you feel like you're just distant from the Lord at that time. Yeah, everybody has those days. It's always there. It's always trying to get in, I think, trying, you know, focusing on what? Get a. I mean, get a program, get a regimen. [00:26:00] Speaker A: Yeah, I agree. [00:26:00] Speaker B: We're gonna do this regardless of whether we're mad at each other. Knowing if you're mad at me. Go take a nap. You'll feel better when you wake up. There's an old saying going on about. [00:26:08] Speaker A: That we have to. You know, we can't always be led by our feelings. [00:26:12] Speaker B: Absolutely. We cannot. Led by our feelings. Even faithful couples had drastic. And that's the thing about it. [00:26:19] Speaker A: Wouldn't you like to just be a fly on the wall in some of these people's houses? Because I often wonder, like, these people that you glamorize and you think you put them on pestle and you think they must have such an amazing prayer life. They probably struggle just like you. [00:26:33] Speaker B: Well, they're human beings. And I think that people out there forget all these influencers. And all these people are human beings, are almost on the God. [00:26:42] Speaker A: Yes. [00:26:43] Speaker B: And they have very real struggles. Matter of fact, we're watching something on TV right now about. About Hollywood, how it affects kids and all that. And it is so sad. [00:26:52] Speaker A: It is sad. What destroyed their lives and what you think you are seeing is not the real person. You know, And I think it's the same thing. And I just wonder, like, you know, I mean, God really does us a favor when he doesn't catapult us into success. And he kind of hides us so that we don't destroy our personal life. [00:27:14] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:27:14] Speaker A: Because, you know, I think you have to have the solid foundation of prayer no matter what. Worship no matter what. And that was the other thing I was gonna say. One of the things that we do sometimes is we'll just play worship, you know, while we're praying or before we pray. And we just kind of just let that. It's like, in the atmosphere. I don't know. I really believe that you just turn that on. And I believe that all of a sudden you can sense the presence of God. So that's another thing that you can do if you have those mornings or those times when you pray with your spouse and you're just like, dude, I got nothing. Okay, well, let's just turn on. [00:27:47] Speaker B: There are days like that, but then the other spouse should come in and kind of lift them up and kind of build up the Spirit in as well. But there are some days when neither one of us have. [00:27:58] Speaker A: I know. And it happens a lot when we're tired. [00:28:01] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:28:01] Speaker A: And we've been busy. And I have been super busy, and I've depleted because I've been with a bunch of extroverts the last week, and them just like, stop talking. Lots of meetings and stuff, so. Absolutely. But Romans, what were you. Were you going to read? Romans 8:26. [00:28:16] Speaker B: Yeah, pull that up right quick. So. 8:26. In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weaknesses, we do not know what we ought to pray for. But the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people and, of course, accordance with the will of God. [00:28:39] Speaker A: Wow, I love that. [00:28:40] Speaker B: So even without us praying, he's always in our studio. He's always. He's already up there. Like, man, Michael's kind of jacked up today, Lord. You know how he is. [00:28:48] Speaker A: But, you know, the Spirit is. But what's interesting is that there's another scripture. I believe it's in Hebrews, where Jesus is continually sitting at the right hand of the Father, making intercession for the saints. That is his job. He is the high priest. [00:29:02] Speaker B: Yes, he is. [00:29:03] Speaker A: And that's. He's always, always there. And so. But then you have the Holy Spirit on this side. [00:29:09] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:29:09] Speaker A: Interceding through us, praying back or saying back to God. What God's already said absolutely is the will for your. His will for your life or whatever. And so that's. I think that's what we're trying to say is, is getting to a place where you're listening to what he wants to pray through you. And sometimes it does take discipline and a regimented approach where, okay, we're gonna study this book of the Bible. It's okay. It's okay to not flip around and just pick it. I mean, like, hey, we want to. We want to study Revelations, Lord, we want to study this. We feel like this is Just what we feel in our heart we're supposed to do. [00:29:43] Speaker B: Right. [00:29:44] Speaker A: And we study it, and then we pray according to what we're seeing. Or we just, you know, release whatever God may be saying. Remember that day whenever both of us were so, like. No, no, no. We were praying, but we felt like this weight and a burden. And you were like, I feel like something is going on in Israel or something. [00:30:06] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:30:07] Speaker A: And I lost my mind and started wailing and I started, like, praying and. [00:30:12] Speaker B: Started praying in tongues over. [00:30:13] Speaker A: Over Israel. I don't remember. Then you said later something happened. [00:30:16] Speaker B: I think that was right before the war. [00:30:19] Speaker A: I think it was, if I'm not mistaken. Yeah. And I think that. [00:30:24] Speaker B: And that's a terrible contradiction. [00:30:26] Speaker A: It is. But, you know, like, the Spirit was interceding through us. [00:30:29] Speaker B: Yes. [00:30:30] Speaker A: And we got to be a part of what God was doing to pray for them. That's what it's about. [00:30:35] Speaker B: Yeah. It's a weight and a heaviness that you can't stay in long because our little weak, frail bodies don't. We can't handle. You need to know about that. [00:30:45] Speaker A: Yes. Intercession is heavy, and it wears you out. [00:30:49] Speaker B: Well, tell them about that lady that's praying for you, praying over you and you flat. [00:30:53] Speaker A: Oh, okay. Yeah. So, I mean, this doesn't really have much to do with this, but it's just that. [00:30:58] Speaker B: Just the power of prayer. [00:30:59] Speaker A: The power of prayer. And she. I had led worship at this little worship room over in Flightwater. And I had finished, and we were just all kind of sitting around talking, and she said she was a pastor at a church and a small church, and she said, I would like to pray for Uganda. And I'm like, yeah, you know, of course. And she barely. I don't even think she. I think she just grabbed my hand, and when she grabbed my hand, like, I felt the word so strongly that I couldn't stand up. And I didn't fall back on my, like, head or anything, but I just kind of, like, my knees went weak. I just fell on my butt, and the. Everything went black, and I had, like, a tunnel vision. When people say that now I know what they mean. [00:31:43] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:31:44] Speaker A: When they're like, yeah, I thought I was dying and I was in a tunnel. I could barely hear. Everything was dark. And it's like my ears were kind of, like, ringing almost. [00:31:55] Speaker B: Right. [00:31:56] Speaker A: And I thought I was going to die. I had no strength in my body. And I thought, they're going to have to call the ambulance because I'm going to die right here. Because I felt him so strong. That is sometimes what intercession is like. And I don't even know why he did that, because I don't know what. I think he was just anointing me for something. I think that's what she said, something about it, because she was saying God's anointing you to leave worship, and something happens when you lead worship in the atmosphere and stuff like that. I don't even remember what else she said, because I just went into another dimension, but I was so. I was. It's like he was so close to me that he was so holy, and he was going to kill me because I was so unholy in my flesh. Our flesh can't. Can't be in the presence of God. That's why we have to die, you know? But that's the kind of stuff that I feel like. And I'm not trying to freak people out, because usually we stay surface level with our marriage podcast. But I think that if people could understand, if you can understand if you're listening, that your marriage purpose is beyond you guys just praying for your marriage every morning. Like, God has a purpose for you as a couple, too. And I think one of ours is intercession. When we will get in the presence of God and we'll discipline ourselves to pray like we're supposed to. We have these moments where he does. Like the moment that he showed us the day that Israel was being attacked and they were shooting all the bombs over there. From where? Where's that place? [00:33:25] Speaker B: Oh, from that little country over there. Not Somalia. Yemen. Yemen there was. [00:33:32] Speaker A: Right, but it was coming from Iraq, right? [00:33:37] Speaker B: No, Yemen is on the other side. [00:33:39] Speaker A: But I thought Iraq was behind it all. [00:33:41] Speaker B: You talking about near the Falls, First Gulf War? [00:33:43] Speaker A: No, just like recently. Love. [00:33:44] Speaker B: Like that was the Houthi rebels. [00:33:46] Speaker A: Okay, that. Whatever. So I'm so bad with names and remembering things, but I just remember that day we were praying for Israel and we were interceding, and then we do our three minutes at the end. We try to. Sometimes we forget or we get busy, but we'll try to do three minutes at least of just like playing some music. And we just. We meditate on the Lord and we're like, is there anything you want to show us? And it's cool because he shows us stuff. And that day he showed me something really cool, of course, that Israel was going to prevail, which I think anybody would believe that and know that's true because that's what happened. But Israel is always going to prevail always will. But God was just reassuring me, and he was showing me how to pray. He showed me specifically how the us was going to be involved. And it was so cool. So I think, like, prayer matters. It's not just about you guys praying over your little family and your needs and your. Because I feel like we're always praying about our finances or whatever. Sometimes it's beyond that. [00:34:45] Speaker B: Right. [00:34:46] Speaker A: And if you don't. If you don't pray together, then you don't get to. You don't get to be a part of God's plan to use you that way. [00:34:53] Speaker B: Absolutely. A couple that prays together stays together for sure. [00:34:56] Speaker A: They not only stay together, they change the world. [00:34:58] Speaker B: Right. [00:34:59] Speaker A: The world they're in anyways, you know, where they live. And our prayers matter. I think that we don't realize it, but they absolutely matter. [00:35:07] Speaker B: I think so. Absolutely. [00:35:11] Speaker A: I love that scripture from Romans. I thought that was so good, how the Spirit intercedes. We just got to make ourselves available. [00:35:18] Speaker B: That's amazing. [00:35:19] Speaker A: Just make ourselves available through him. [00:35:21] Speaker B: As soon as we have a thought about something, the Holy Spirit's already there saying, okay, hey, Lord, this is what he's got going on today. [00:35:27] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:35:27] Speaker B: He's gonna need some grace. Let's say some bad words. [00:35:32] Speaker A: Let's talk about why it matters. And I think we said a lot of this already, but, I mean, because when we. When we stop to pray like that, it invites him into the middle of our situation, our family. [00:35:46] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:35:47] Speaker A: And it's not just. I think we have to remember, it's not just us as a couple. It's us and God. And it's a covenant. He made a covenant with us. It's not just we have a little friendship thing going here. No. [00:36:02] Speaker B: Right. No. It's our friendship thing. He is the All Father. [00:36:04] Speaker A: He's in it. [00:36:07] Speaker B: He's in it to win it. [00:36:08] Speaker A: And even when we're dead, we're still in the covenant. You know what I mean? [00:36:13] Speaker B: They can never take that away. It's there. It's already there. [00:36:15] Speaker A: And have you noticed this, that when we pray together, not only do we stay together, but we have more unity in our everyday life. I feel like it kind of like unifies us. [00:36:30] Speaker B: It brings us together. Definitely does bring together. Well, I think that we share a moment in the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit's in both of us. And the Holy Spirit is one being. So you feel a little bit of the Spirit. I feel a little bit of the Spirit. Let's just come together and feel the. [00:36:43] Speaker A: Whole Spirit and that's how we know it's God. Because if we feel the same thing, then we're like, okay, that's what he's saying. So we're not guessing. It's not just me over here or you. We're like, no, I'm feeling like this direction. And that's love that. I love that we have that three strand cord that's not easily broken with him, you know? [00:37:02] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:37:03] Speaker A: Are you tired? [00:37:05] Speaker B: Well, I got slapped in the face a couple of times last time. [00:37:10] Speaker A: All right, what do you want to say? Why do you think it matters beyond those two points? [00:37:15] Speaker B: Well, I think that prayer builds humility. And I think that one of the important things about a relationship is that both people have to be humble in it. You know, you have to be able to admit your fault. You have to be able to say, okay, well, let's do what you want to do today. [00:37:34] Speaker A: Why are you laughing about that? [00:37:35] Speaker B: I did not laugh. I giggled a little bit. That's fine. And then I think that after prayer there's something humbling about feeling the Holy Spirit in you and knowing that you are in the presence of Almighty God, you know, and it makes you feel less than worthy. And we are. But just knowing that the Spirit is in you and I and that it is working for the betterment of us just makes me feel so humble. It really does. Because I was one of the worst of the worst. And the Spirit still saw I was worthy enough to come in, come into this old cobble webbed heart that I had and start interceding for me, you know, there's just something so humbling. [00:38:30] Speaker A: Well, he probably never stopped, honestly. [00:38:32] Speaker B: Yeah, you just got to feel it, you know, gotta be open to it. Yeah. You can't stay hardened toward your spouse. [00:38:43] Speaker A: Yeah, that's so true. [00:38:45] Speaker B: Yeah. And if you, if you says this in the Bible or not, it says if you had something on your heart that's going to limit the message of God. So you still, you have to clear your heart first and knowing you have to have a neutral heart before you do anything, especially pray to the Lord. [00:39:09] Speaker A: Yeah, it's hard because, you know, there are times that, you know, like, you're mad and you know that if you pray, God's going to make you like forgive, so you don't even pray. Does that make sense? [00:39:21] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:39:22] Speaker A: And so I think even in those situations where you're trying to pray with your spouse and you're mad, it's going to force you to, to humble yourself and surrender. [00:39:32] Speaker B: It is. [00:39:33] Speaker A: And get the flesh out of the way. Because that's what it is, flesh. It wants to hold on, it wants to fight. I mean, the flesh is hostile to God and to each other, you know? [00:39:42] Speaker B: Yes, absolutely. [00:39:43] Speaker A: I Love what Matthew 18, 19 and 20 says. If two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done. [00:39:51] Speaker B: Yes. [00:39:52] Speaker A: So there's something so powerful about you and I coming together and asking him. I don't know what this is, but this is what Jesus said. He just said, where two or three are gathered doesn't have to be like a whole ensemble of people. [00:40:06] Speaker B: It doesn't have to be any crazy scene to be flashing lights or anything like that. You can feel the spirit in church just as much as you can feel it in your home. And there's no difference between the two things. It's all the same. [00:40:17] Speaker A: Yeah. And I was going to say, like, if you guys continually find yourself fighting about finances or fighting about your children or fighting about whatever. Whatever it is, I have to ask, have you guys really prayed together about that thing? [00:40:34] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:40:35] Speaker A: Because for a long time you and I have prayed, you know, because we have financially struggled the last couple years, but really the last year. And we've said every month, lord, just give us what we need. Thank you for that. And he does. But then that one day I felt like he said, stop asking me for that. Ask me for a lumps. Ask me for a big sum of money so that you can pay this debt off. That's the problem. It's the debt that you have. And I was like, oh. And so you and I decided. I told you, I said, is this crazy? [00:41:07] Speaker B: And you're like, set a monetary value that we want the Lord to send us. And we pray for it every day. [00:41:12] Speaker A: Because our goal was not that we could be free so we could go travel to, I don't know, Europe and go on cruises all the time and live it up. And no, it was so that we could be available to God and we didn't have to have money because we. All our debt paid off. That was the goal of it. [00:41:28] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:41:29] Speaker A: And I still want to do that, you know, and we still are praying for that. So that's what I'm saying. Like, if the people that are listening, if you're listening and you're saying all we do is fight about certain things. Well, have you guys literally taken that thing before the Lord and ask him. [00:41:44] Speaker B: But, you know, even though you take for the Lord, you have to be strong enough to wait for the response, because it's like, you know, keep going Back to Daniel. It doesn't happen immediately. [00:41:55] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:41:55] Speaker B: And like, with the monetary value that we've asked for, it hasn't happened yet, and God is continuing. I think it's. I think God still has us in a season. [00:42:04] Speaker A: And I think our faith. [00:42:06] Speaker B: It really is our faith. You know, it's being tested pretty rarely. [00:42:09] Speaker A: But how? How. Here's the thing. How can God give you something that you don't ever pray for? Right? [00:42:13] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:42:14] Speaker A: So if you don't ever ask him, if you don't ask, seek, knock. Which is what Jesus said. [00:42:19] Speaker B: Ask. [00:42:20] Speaker A: It will be given. Speak, and the door will be open. Knock. I'm sorry. Speaking. You'll find knock, and the door be open. If you don't do those things, then how can he answer your prayer? And I think that that's the whole issue is people, either they're so disillusioned with life or they're so disappointed or they're tired of struggling that they just stop asking, seeking, and knocking. But I'm telling you, try it with your spouse and stop doing it alone all the time. [00:42:43] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:42:43] Speaker A: And then like, okay, Lord, we want to pray, but we want to know, like, how do you want us to pray about this? Like, he told me, ask me for the full amount so you can pay your debt off. [00:42:52] Speaker B: Right. [00:42:52] Speaker A: And then I told you, and you were like, yeah, I think so, too. And so that's what we do. [00:42:56] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:42:57] Speaker A: I mean, we got a word from the Lord, and now we pray it. We pray it into existence. [00:43:00] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:43:01] Speaker A: You know, by agreeing. By taking our faith and agreeing with him what he said, because his word will not return to him void ever. [00:43:10] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:43:11] Speaker A: So I am talking a whole lot. Okay, so let's talk about how to pray when you don't feel like it. Like, one of the things that works is to keep it simple and keep it short. [00:43:22] Speaker B: It can be a simple prayer like, lord, help us love each other better today than we did yesterday. You know, put all of our faith and trust in you, and thank you so much for your grace. Just a short prayer. You know, when I was a kid, I was going to a Baptist church in Purvis, Mississippi. It's called Coletown Fellowship Baptist Church, Coltown, Coletown. We were all country over there. But there was this old man I know about. He has to be with the Lord now. He was in his 80s, 30, 40 years ago. And we always. There's always that one that prays for like, an hour and a half. [00:44:04] Speaker A: Yes, I remember you telling me about that. [00:44:05] Speaker B: God bless this old man every time he Got called on. You could hear the air. Just leave the church out. No. And sure enough, you know, you stand up to recess or you stand up to be dismissed. You say the afternoon prayer and then you go home. By the end of his prayer, we're all sitting down and I'm talking, I'm telling you a good 30 minute prayer. [00:44:28] Speaker A: Who was wrong? Y' all are him, though. [00:44:30] Speaker B: He was right. We were wrong because we didn't show them the Christian love that we should have. [00:44:34] Speaker A: No. What if he was being led by. [00:44:36] Speaker B: The Lord, you know? Yeah, yeah, he was. But I mean, I just use that as a case point to where you don't have to pray for 45 minutes or something. A short prayer, but, you know, keep it on your mind throughout the day and meditate on the Lord with your mind throughout the day. Me, I talk to him all the time. You know, I talk to God like he's on my level, which he's not. But, you know, when I'm outside woodworking, something, I say a curse word or something like that, like, lord, just please forgive me for that. You know, I'm really stressed out right now and I feel him right there, you know, and he was a carpenter. God built everything. So if God can help me with my carpenter hand to stay focused on him, even during the trials and tribulations. Prayers awaiting. [00:45:17] Speaker A: Absolutely. I think sometimes you can use scripture as prayer when you don't know what to pray. I've done this before. I go to Psalms and I'll just find one that I love. Psalm 20:We read. I read that one a lot. There's another one I've been reading a lot where it is right now, but they're just in this moment, in this season. They feel like they are like what God is saying, you know, so it's like saying that when you don't have your own words and we have books with prayers written in them and sometimes we pull from those. [00:45:50] Speaker B: Yeah, we do. [00:45:51] Speaker A: And that's fine. Because sometimes when you don't know, you know, it's okay. Like there are actually prayers in the Bible and you look in the New Testament, you look at Paul and he writes, and he. There are actually literally prayers that he writes out in Ephesians. You can take that prayer like, lord, let may the eyes of the eyes of our heart be enlightened or give us understanding to see what is the good. All that stuff. You can use that as your prayer. You don't have to. [00:46:20] Speaker B: Well, you can find a prayer. A prayer is like a recipe, like the Lord's Supper or the Lord's Prayer, when he's at the garden and gets him. You can take a prayer and you can make it your own. You know, if you need a format, there's nothing against taking a prayer that you see in the Bible. David, Psalms is full of Proverbs. But. But Proverbs has prayers in it. Psalms has prayers in it. And take that prayer and make it your own and use that one in your times of high stress. And it's so powerful. [00:46:58] Speaker A: The word of God is so powerful. And. And it's not a slight to say, well, I don't have my own words, so I'm just gonna use the Bible. I guess God don't care. Seriously, use the Bible instead of your own words. It's probably better anyway. [00:47:11] Speaker B: Well, God doesn't care as long as the intent is there and you have a pure heart. When you come before him, he's like, okay, man, you know what? Yeah, I know David. David and I are pretty tight, but I'll let you use this stuff right now. [00:47:20] Speaker A: Well, I always think about, you know, because it's not performance. I always think about, like, Cohen, our little grandson, Holland. They are the cutest things ever. And it would break my heart if they felt like, oh, shabby. She doesn't like that. She doesn't like me when I do this, or she's not happy. I'm not doing a good job. I would never want them to feel like that. You know what I'm saying? And I think that God wants us to know that he's not ever asking us to do things perfectly. He's asking us just to do them the best we can. [00:47:52] Speaker B: The best we can. That's all he wants us to do. [00:47:53] Speaker A: In the way that he made us. [00:47:56] Speaker B: Well, he knows we live in a fallen world. He was here when it happened. And as long as we're giving our best effort, that's enough. A lot of people feel like, well, you know, if I don't. If I go out and I sin that day, that I've lost that day. No, you haven't. That sin can bring you closer to the Lord. [00:48:11] Speaker A: Absolutely. [00:48:11] Speaker B: Every day you say it. Every day you walk out of here, out of the house, you feel like a champion. Because you know what? You are a champion. You're a forgiven child of God. And stay in prayer. Use the scriptures of prayer. If you have to. Use something that keeps you close to the Lord. There's a great song about one of these young ladies that says, write Scripture and keep it on your heart. And remember it. And you can pray that prayer, like, you know, over and over and over throughout the day. [00:48:37] Speaker A: Yeah. And I think another important thing is to set the rhythm of the prayer time. Like, so don't just let it slide all over the place, like, okay, well, today I'm going to be doing this, this, and this. So I guess I'll pray at this time. Yeah, no, make it. It's the most important thing you're going to do that day. So set the time for it and then do it. Like, for us, it's the morning, you know. [00:49:01] Speaker B: Well, that's when we're least busy. [00:49:02] Speaker A: Yeah. I want to do it before I start because it sets the time for my day. For us, personally, that's why I like it. [00:49:09] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:49:09] Speaker A: I think we should do it at night, too. I think we did it for a. [00:49:12] Speaker B: While, but then also we just stop. [00:49:14] Speaker A: It doesn't have to be like a lot. Like you said, doesn't have to be an hour thing. I mean, it could be 10 minutes where we just go, okay, Lord, thank you for this day. And then whatever he may be put on our heart. [00:49:26] Speaker B: I pray every night before I go to sleep. [00:49:28] Speaker A: I don't. [00:49:29] Speaker B: I pray every night when my head hits the pillow. I have a conversation with the Lord. Sometimes it don't make any sense because the sleep meds have already come in. But the Holy Spirit knows my heart. The Holy Spirit knows what I'm trying to say. And he's like, okay, Lord, don't listen to him. Listen to me. [00:49:44] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:49:46] Speaker B: Also pray for your spouse. [00:49:48] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:49:48] Speaker B: Unceasingly pray for your partner. [00:49:51] Speaker A: Absolutely. I mean, that's something I don't think a lot of us do that we should be doing. I think we all pray for ourselves, but. You ever pray for your spouse? [00:50:00] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:50:01] Speaker A: You know, I have 10. I'm gonna post these somewhere, so I'll probably like a Pinterest link and I'll put this graphic on Pinterest, because this is really good. It's 10 simple prayers for couples in hard seasons, and I'm just gonna zip through them. But it's like, the first one is a prayer for unity. And it's just so simple because this is like, okay, what if you just took one of these every day for 10 days and you prayed this with your spouse? Number one is Lord, remind us we're on the same team. Help us face challenges side by side, not against each other. Like, that's the whole prayer. And then maybe you expound on that. Maybe, you know, you just take that and run with It. But it's kind of a starting point for you. And maybe you find some scriptures and you pray those scriptures that have to do with that. Number two, pray a prayer for peace. God, calm our hearts and bring peace into our home. Let your spirit replace tension with tenderness. Man, why would God not honor these prayers? These are really good. [00:51:04] Speaker B: All according to God's timing. [00:51:05] Speaker A: I mean, he wants this. He wants to bring unity into your home. He wants you to have peace in your home. [00:51:10] Speaker B: Right. [00:51:11] Speaker A: Prayer for wisdom. Lord, give us wisdom. To know when to speak, when to listen, and when to simply be present. [00:51:17] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. [00:51:18] Speaker A: How many arguments would you not have if you did that? You know what I'm saying? [00:51:22] Speaker B: Well, it's important. And this is something you and I can even do. I know we don't do. Whenever you start having a disagreement, we just jump right into it. [00:51:30] Speaker A: Just go into the disagreement. So we're going here. Okay. [00:51:34] Speaker B: I have the big knife today, but I think instead of that, say, lord, I need your help right now. Lord, come into me and not let me say anything hurtful. [00:51:45] Speaker A: See, actually, I would take this now. We do this for 10 weeks. And I would do, like, week one. I'd pray for unity every day at our prayer time. So here's number or, God, give us patience with each other's weaknesses and grace for each other's growth. [00:52:04] Speaker B: Everybody's got a weakness. If somebody tells you they don't have a weakness, they got issues. [00:52:08] Speaker A: But asking God to actually give you the grace that you need and the patience that you need is his Spirit. That's like, patience is the fruit of the Spirit. So if his spirit is present in your home and you're yielded, then you will have more patience for your spouse. Right? [00:52:25] Speaker B: Right. [00:52:26] Speaker A: Number five, prayer for healing. Heavenly Father, heal the hurts we've caused one another. Restore what feels broken. [00:52:35] Speaker B: Great prayer. And it took 10 seconds. [00:52:37] Speaker A: Yep. The next one, Prayer for Intimacy. Lord, draw us close, not just physically but emotionally and spiritually. The next one, a prayer for guidance. God, direct our steps as a couple. Align our desires with your will for our family. And then the last one, prayer for gratitude. Lord, open our eyes to see the good in each other every day. Teach us to be thankful in all things. [00:53:00] Speaker B: That's a good one. [00:53:00] Speaker A: These are all really, really good, short, quick prayers. And they're so, like, obviously these are in line with God's heart. So you don't have to wonder, is this really God's will? Of course it is. I agree. [00:53:13] Speaker B: You know, open up the verse. If you like that verse, then pray Lord, hear this. [00:53:18] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:53:19] Speaker B: And say the prayer. Just because it's not 20 minutes long doesn't mean that God's not hearing it. God hears us all throughout the day, whether we're praying or not. Anyway. Yeah, but when you add God into the conversation, that's. This is what I've been waiting for. Come on, bring it. And it's working out together. [00:53:36] Speaker A: Yeah. I think what we're doing. Because if you looked at all those prayers, they were. They were. Okay, how do I say this? They were spiritual and they were the things that are important to God. The eternal heavenly perspective. Things like how we treat each other. Give us grace, give us patience with each other. They weren't. Things like, God, give us money this week. God, those things matter, too. [00:54:06] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:54:06] Speaker A: But these things are so important, and we don't pray for them like we should. And I feel like convicted because I pulled this list up and I was like, oh, God, I'm not doing anything. [00:54:15] Speaker B: Totally hypocrite. You're a hypocrite. [00:54:17] Speaker A: These are great. [00:54:18] Speaker B: Yeah, these are great. Well, you know, I mean, we pray. We don't follow a particular verse. I don't always follow a verse. I just. You know me, I'd say anything to the Lord, but that's just my relationship with him. You know, I joke with him, I laugh with him. We say corny things about each other while we're praying. And it's not that we don't appreciate it. I think that sets up an intimacy between the two of us that, you know. Okay, I'm kind of stuck. Go ahead. [00:54:50] Speaker A: Well, you said you think it's that intimacy between us. Just the familiarity of it. Yeah. [00:54:58] Speaker B: In the moment, the familiarity of it is probably. [00:54:59] Speaker A: But I agree with that. And there are moments, there are days when I just want it to be like a free flow. But I. I also think it's good to have structure because it keeps you from wandering around and just kind of like being in your feelings too much and being just not focused. You know what I mean? [00:55:18] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:55:19] Speaker A: So, anyway, those are just some tips and maybe some prayers that could help you if you feel like you're stuck and you can't. Like, you don't know how to pray with your spouse because it's so foreign. Because it's so. I don't think a lot of spouses do. [00:55:32] Speaker B: We didn't do it a whole bunch the first couple years we were married. You know, we prayed at church when we went. [00:55:37] Speaker A: Most people go to church on Sunday. [00:55:39] Speaker B: We never had a morning. Often we're Living in the long ever, you know? And I think things have gotten harder and stronger between us. I think that when you start doing that on a consistent basis, I think the darker realm, the demon realm, notices that. And as long as they're keeping you just business, business, business, business, they don't have to do anything. But the moment that you wake up and you realize, you know what? I didn't include God in this today. We didn't include God in this today, and we need to slow down and we need to pray. That's when things get hard. But you know what, man? Just stay strong. Put on the full armor of God. [00:56:18] Speaker A: You know, I think God wants to move his people beyond this kind of prayers, where it's like begging him to help you and save me and me, me, me, me, me. I think he's wanting us to realize that if we were in intentional relationship with him all the time and we prayed all the time, like we know him and we talk to him all the time, that we trust him. He's going to take care of these things. So the weightier things are the, okay, Lord, what is this? The purpose of our marriage. What are you doing right now? And how can we partner with you? He wants you to move beyond. Fix this. Fix me, too. How can we partner with you in your kingdom? What are you doing right now? [00:57:03] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:57:03] Speaker A: How do we fit into this? We want to serve you. [00:57:06] Speaker B: Yep. God's not going to force his way in. This isn't the Old Testament. This is the New Testament. And God gave us a direct path to him, something that the ancient Israelis did not have. [00:57:16] Speaker A: Yeah, it was a lot harder. [00:57:17] Speaker B: It's a lot harder. [00:57:18] Speaker A: And even then, it was very restricted. [00:57:20] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:57:20] Speaker A: So we have something that they dreamed about. [00:57:24] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:57:24] Speaker A: And still don't have. [00:57:25] Speaker B: Absolutely. You know, God had to be more proactive with the Hebrews just because they didn't have that intercessory. They had to do that through all the other things they did. [00:57:34] Speaker A: And we're just so fortunate that we can pray. I hope that we hope this episode was not, like, annoying and you turn it off at five minutes in. But we hope to get you excited about praying with your spouse. [00:57:49] Speaker B: Absolutely, man. Couple that prays together stays together, and it can increase so many levels of your marriage and your family. You know, a praying family is like an army unto the Lord. And they will. You know, if you got a whole house full of prayer warriors, man. The enemy can't. The enemy doesn't stand. [00:58:09] Speaker A: It's going to be harder for you to divorce if you guys are on the same page, and you're praying together because the enemy's going to be seen for what he really is. And you're going to surrender to the Lord. You're going to humble yourself, and you'll probably work it out. But if you're not praying together, I'm not. You know, it definitely opens the door. [00:58:30] Speaker B: You always have to remember that people can change their prayer as well. You know, just because you got someone who did bad, male or female, doesn't mean that prayer can't change. That you can do is pray for something. [00:58:43] Speaker A: And that's what I did with you. I mean, I wasn't praying that your life would fall apart. Fall apart. And that we would lose, you know, whatever. I was. I was praying that you would love him the way that I love him, that you would know him that way, that you would have an encounter with him. Had I known it was going to end up the way it did, I don't know that I would have prayed about it that exact way. I would have been more specific. [00:59:06] Speaker B: Well, the Holy Spirit knew what you were trying to say, and he was the intercessor. [00:59:10] Speaker A: Well, you know what? He and I need to talk about that anyways. But I wouldn't take it back. Of course. But it's just God answers prayer when it's on his heart, and that's what he wants. [00:59:21] Speaker B: Absolutely. [00:59:21] Speaker A: And when you pray it, you release it. And that's what we're doing as a couple. So I hope whoever's listening to this, that is something you. [00:59:29] Speaker B: Right. And I'm going to encourage you guys just to pray together at least once a week. You know, at least once a week, sit down, have a Bible study and see how it would change the atmosphere in your home. Because you start doing once a week and you make time for twice a week. And then we do it. [00:59:44] Speaker A: Well, because you realize that when you do it all, all of a sudden it feels really good in the house. [00:59:49] Speaker B: The house welcomes in all of the good stuff. All the bad stuff is pushed out of the house. And you will notice over time that the home will change, your family will change, because the Holy Spirit is able to permeate through you, smile more, and the Holy Spirit will able to permeate into your atmosphere and get rid of everything holding you down. [01:00:10] Speaker A: Yeah. Yes. We love it. Yay. I hope you guys are excited to pray. Let's pray. [01:00:14] Speaker B: Absolutely. Let's pray. Go ahead, honey. I'll let you go first. [01:00:19] Speaker A: All right. Lord, we just thank you for prayer. We thank you for that lifeline that you've given us. And I pray God that you let us see it for what it is. Not as some boring thing that we have to do, but it's something amazing that we get. We get to talk to you. We get to listen to you. We get to fellowship with you and our spouse. Lord, I pray that you just stir all of our hearts toward reconciliation with our spouses and being reconciled to you as a couple and building that marriage altar in our home for how beautiful and precious that is and how it can literally change your marriage and your home forever and save possibly generations behind you because doing that. So we thank you for it, Lord. We praise you. And I guess we are done for. [01:01:10] Speaker B: The week, and we'll see you guys next week. One more thing. If today's episode has encouraged you or your wife or you as a couple in any way, share it with a friend who might need the reminder that God meets us even when we don't feel like showing up. Just because we go halfway doesn't mean that God only goes halfway. God will go the full route, but you have to acknowledge him. You have to say, lord, scream out. You know, scream whatever you got to do. You know, whatever you got to do to get God's attention. And he will turn his head towards you and shine you with his bright countenance. And he will get involved. All right, everyone. Lucky number nine. Thank you so much for listening. You have a blessed day. [01:02:07] Speaker A: Silence falls and darkness grows when my heart hides.