When God Writes Your Love Story

i'm reading a book right now called When God Writes Your Love Story by Eric and Leslie Ludy. in the chapter "Developing Inward Excellence", Eric challenges guys with this...

"Guys, just imagine that God has it in His mind to bring into your life someday a precious and lovely wife who will make your heart skip a beat every time you look at her. Can you picture that?

   Now, I want you also to imagine that this beautiful young woman can see you right now. Pretend that she is capable of watching you, everywhere you go, and she is able to see everything you do. I know this is really stretching your imagination, guys, but stick with me!

   Okay then, if she could see and hear everything, ask yourself this question, 'If she followed me around throughout my day, every day of my life, would she feel cherished and adored by me as she watches me interact with other girls? Would she come away each day saying, "He sure does love me!" or would she be deeply hurt by the way I give what is hers to other women?'"

this is a huge conviction. even for me... i want to go about my days (and nights) honoring my future husband as if he could see me and hear me at all times.

and in the chapter "A Forever Kind of Love", Leslie talks about a verse she had read (as have i) many times before. Proverbs 31:12 dramatically changed the way she was living from that day forward. the verse says...

She (the wife of godly character) does him (her husband) good

 and not evil all the days of her life.

Leslie writes, "Wait a minute! My mind raced. All the days of her life? What was that supposed to mean? I had yet to meet any woman who had been married all the days of her life. Did this verse mean she tried to do her husband good...even before she met him?

   I felt a nudge on my heart. And somehow, I knew this was what God wanted for me. To seek my future husband's highest good...starting right now...

   The gentle nudge continued, ultimately forcing me to examine the way I was living. How had I been approaching relationships? Each time I was involved with someone, I poured my heart, my emotions, my affection, my time, and all my attention onto that person...

   'How would you future husband feel...' my heart seemed to ask, 'if he could see you giving everything you are to these relationships? If he could watch you freely giving away your heart, your emotions, and your physical purity...a treasure that belongs to him?'

My heart ached. I realized so clearly in that moment that I hadn't been loving my future husband. With the way I had been living, I hadn't even been considering him at all! Instead, I had been consumed with meeting my own immediate desires. Sadness overcame me as I saw that I had been giving his treasure, piece by piece, to each guy I dated."

wow. how humbling is that? i could have written every word of that myself. i am so grateful for these and convictions and challenges today.

Lord, i want to honor You and my future husband with the way i live. i am making a commitment today to love him and seek his highest good from now on. thank You for loving me sacrificially, selflessly, and unconditionally. help me to love like that...