In UnisonSample

 Adrienne

Years ago, I was reading through the Old Testament when I came to this passage in Deuteronomy 6:

Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. (verses 5-9, NIV)

I was struck by how practical this instruction was—especially the part about writing our love for God on the doorframes of our houses. From then on, I became more intentional about displaying décor and paintings in our style that had Scripture on them. I can’t tell you how many times a passage hanging on my wall has hit the bull’s-eye of my heart because it is pertinent to my situation. Scripture truly is God-breathed, living, and active (2 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 4:12).

Recently, I bought a Magnolia-style hanging of 1 Corinthians 13 for our bathroom wall as a checklist. I wanted to ask myself, am I being any of these things? Coincidentally, a few days later Jeremy was being short-tempered. As we enjoyed a family supper around the dinner table, discussing ways God speaks to us and if there was anything anyone wanted to share, Jeremy confessed to me and the kids that the verse had caught his eye. The Lord had used it to show him he was not loving me well.

I had hoped these verses would be an encouragement, but I didn’t know anyone else in the house had noticed them. Without a word from my mouth, my husband heard from the Lord. I had certainly noticed his snappiness with me, but I didn’t have to nag him or point it out. The Holy Spirit revealed it to him for me.

God truly is our best defense and shield. He is the safest place we can run to, and His Word can be trusted. The Holy Spirit is so much better than we are at doing a work in someone or creating a lasting change in them. The sooner we realize that God is the source of everything we need, the better companions we can be to each other.