Anchored In Grace Marriage Podcast
Our vision is to answer God’s call by using our marriage—its experiences, lessons, and redemption—to help couples seek God for true transformation. Through Christ, we stand to reclaim marriages from the enemy, reminding the world that marriage belongs to God, was redeemed by Christ’s sacrifice, and is meant to reflect His love, grace, and covenant faithfulness. We envision marriages elevated, restored, and anchored in God’s truth so they may glorify Him and strengthen families for generations to come.
Anchored In Grace Marriage Podcast
Creating the Practice and Habit of Prayer in Your Relationship
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Today, we are discussing a powerful practice that can deepen your relationship: prayer. Creating a habit of prayer in your relationship not only strengthens your bond but also brings you closer to God.
Welcome back to another episode of Anchored by Grace, where we dive into practical advice for nurturing relationships through faith. I am Eric.
SPEAKER_02And I'm Sharif. Today we're discussing a powerful practice that can help deepen your relationship, which is prayer. That has been a huge foundation for our relationship, Eric. What did you say?
SPEAKER_00I would say, most definitely. Creating a habit of prayer in your relationship is not only strengthens your bond, but also it brings you closer to God. And that's really, really important, and we really want to impart that to you today. The importance of growing closer to God in your marriage. There's a scripture, Matthew 19, verses 5 and 6. And it reads, and it says, For the reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but they but one flesh. One flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate. This and this verse is important because oneness in God, and I I just want to declare, oneness in God is truly important. And we'll talk more about that as we go through the podcast.
SPEAKER_02That's great. So exactly. So let's start by exploring how seeking God's guidance through prayer can lay the foundation for your rel relationship. So let's start off with prayer, because that is so important, because that is exactly what we're talking about today. So, Father God, in the name of Jesus, God, we just thank you, God, for this opportunity to have this podcast to um be here and um just give a word and just be able to connect with people, God, and to spread your word, to be a vessel of you, God, to be used by you, God. We ask that this just lays the foundation for people that are seeking relationships, seeking a foundation in their relationship, and to know how to set that foundation. So we just speak that over them right now and just continue a foundation over our relationship, God, and just continue to strengthen it. And strengthen those that are out there, God. We just ask that you just um pour your um blood over it right now in Jesus' name and fill it, God, with your love. And in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
SPEAKER_01Amen.
SPEAKER_00So in our first segment, we're gonna be discussing seeking God's guidance. Prayer is a time when couples can present their desires, concerns, and plans before God, seeking divine wisdom and discernment. And what I mean by that, I want you guys to think about it. As a couple, and this is something Shars and I had to learn, you know, as a new couple or even a couple that's been together for a while, anything that you go through in your relationship, you're not in it alone. You know, any decisions you're making, you want to bring those to God. You want to be able to to to to to bring anything to God that you are thinking of doing because we can go down a the wrong path in our choices sometimes, you know, by making decisions off our own emotions, off our own desire. We want to be in the will of God in everything we do.
SPEAKER_02Mm-hmm. That's so good, then. And, you know, it's vital, you know, to understand that initially praying as a couple, it can feel a bit awkward or uncomfortable, you know, because you know, even if you're praying with anybody else that you never met, it's kinda like, Oh my gosh, you know, like how do I pray for them? What do I do? But, you know, just allow God to work in your life. Allow God to lead you, um, just as He will in your relationship, as as He has in our relationship. And that's just like how you get to know a person in a relationship, you have to ask questions, right? You get to know them by um asking them questions, getting to know them, um, spending time with them and that's the same same thing with God, you know, spending time that intimate time with God. Um, and that's so important. And as you do that, that personal intimate time with God becomes so much better and better each time it just it becomes a routine. You know what I mean? Um so I I just love that because it will be awkward in the beginning, you know, kinda like holding hands for the first time um with your mate. But praying becomes easier and easier as it as it goes by. So I think that's you know, important to make sure we mention as um we go through this segment in prayer.
SPEAKER_00Amen. Amen. And you know, it's under s it is it's is ri it's really important to understand sometimes when we're thinking of wisdom, seeking God's wisdom, and also understanding what what discernment is and asking God to give you discernment, you know. And it's through prayer is how we seek discernment, you know what I mean? And it's through hearing God's voice. You know, you're not gonna hear God's voice if you don't have a relationship to pray. You know what I mean? And you're never going to be able to get God's wisdom if you're not opening up his word, you know. So those are some practical things to really think about, you know. And remember, God invites us into conversations with him. Not just once a week, but daily. You know, daily, God wants us to talk to him. You know, the more we engage in prayer, the more comfortable you will become in that engagement. The greater your relationship with God comes. And you should want to have a relationship. It's like you do with your best friend. You call your homie up on the phone, you're like, What's up, boy? You know, you're talking about football games, basketball games, or you call your wife and you just chatting and hey babe, you know, what's going on, you know, you can share anything with your love, you know what I'm saying? It's just easy like that. It's like you're talking to your best friend. That's how your conversation with God should be on a daily basis. You know, you sh it it you should be comfortable talking to him.
SPEAKER_02Mm-hmm. That's good. That's so good. I love that. That is that's uh I love you said that because so many people don't look at their relationship with God that way. They think I only can go to God to talk to God when I need him. Mm-hmm. You know what I mean? Um, and that is so good because God is it I I man, I love that. Thank you for sharing that. Um, we'll move on.
SPEAKER_00She she you know it's funny, babe, sometimes we're talking the other day when I think Pastor Mike was saying, our church, we go to a church called Rock City Church. And our pastor ha had brought up in a sermon which I thought was so powerful, that we can be like prayer warriors that pray like a daily prayer warrior, or we can be a prayer warrior that prays, what did he say? That are we're we're kind of like sometime prayer warriors. You only pray when problems come up. Right. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. So what do you want to be? You want to be a a daily prayer warrior, or you want to be a prayer warrior when problems come up? Because you can develop a relationship with God to where if your relationship with God is like that, and he sees that the only time you pray to him is when problems come up, right? The only thing that you're ever gonna have in your life is problems. Because God's gonna say, that's how you communicate with me, so he's gonna keep allowing problems to come into your life because that's the only time you will pray.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_00So if you pray daily, right, I pray every day because I love to pray, I love to talk to you, God. I I love talking to you about the goodness and and all the good you do in my life. That's a different relationship than God, things is bad today. My check didn't come in on time. So I need you, I need you, God, I need you, God. You don't you only need him in times of chaos. You can't use God like that. You need to use God, don't use him at all. You need to love God and just know that God is a person in your life that you love on a daily basis. You're thankful. You know what I'm saying? You have a daily relationship with him.
SPEAKER_02Amen to that. You better preach, okay. And yes, you you are so right on that. And you know, you have to push past those initial moments of uncertainty. Um, God will begin to grow your relationship in ways you have never imagined if you do exactly what my husband just said, and um it was talking about mediocrity, you know, uh praying at that level of mediocrity. And um I just love that. But this scripture right here is on Proverbs 3, 5 through 6. It reminds us it says, Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding and all of your ways, submit to him, and he will make your path straight. Um, so that is so good because when you begin to grow in your relationship with God, just remember he will open up ways you have never imagined. Can you imagine that? Just when you think about that, when you have a relationship, you you're opening up you're you're tapping into access, right, to God, directly to God, not just the surface, right? You have gone beyond the surface, right? And it's so beautiful, you know, to um when you have gone upon that level, you know, with God, it's just a whole nother level. And it's so beautiful.
SPEAKER_00Amen. So now we're moving into the next segment, which is building spiritual intimacy, which is just building off what my beautiful wife just said. Spiritual intimacy is so important, you know.
SPEAKER_02So spiritual um intimacy is another beautiful aspect of praying together, is that it fosters spiritual intimacy.
SPEAKER_00That's right. And that's beautiful, baby. When couples pray together, you know, and this is something me and my wife would believe in. We we pray every day together. You know, you are opening up your heart to one another, you're opening up your heart to God, you're sharing your fears, your hopes, your dreams in the presence of God, and that's powerful. Yes. When you can do that with one another, you know, that's what God would have us do as a couple, you know, and that's how you build together.
SPEAKER_02That's right.
SPEAKER_00You know?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. And that really deepens our bonds. You know, there's a powerful verse that encapsulates the um it's in Matthew. It's eight Matthew 18 and 20. It says, For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them. So if we, you know, God is in the midst, He is right there with us. You know what I mean?
SPEAKER_00Amen. Amen to that. You know, when we can witness each other's spiritual journeys, it strengthens our connections and creates a space, uh I'm sorry, a safe space for growth, God, for growth for one another, a safe space for growth for each other. When I see my wife grow and I see her growing spiritually, that opens up a space for me to grow too. That encourages me to grow. That makes me want to grow. You know what I mean? So I love that.
SPEAKER_02That's right.
SPEAKER_00I love that.
SPEAKER_02So now we're going on to our segment three, and this is expressing gratitude and petitions. So um, this one is prayer also serves as a platform for expressing gratitude.
SPEAKER_00And, you know, that's a big one. It's really important to take a moment to thank God for your relationship and to pray for each other's well-being. You know, every day I say a specific prayer for my wife, for my children, for myself, for my family, for my domain. You know what I mean? I say these prayers because the enemy is constantly attacking. This is spiritual warfare.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_00And we have to be on guard and we have to be prepared because he Satan is always after us. So I pray over the people I love the most. And and and and and I'm always pleading um the the the uh uh the the full armor of God over my family to protect my family.
SPEAKER_02And um I love that. I love and God is my witness. I every morning I wake up, my husband's up praying, and I'm like, Hey, what you doing, you know? And at first when he used to do it often, and I was like, What is he doing? you know, and he would just be praying, you know, I'm like, Who's he talking to? you know, and he was like, Hey, I'm praying, you know, I'm praying, you know, and I I would just love that to pray in the beginning of your relationship for a man that prays for you. That that to me just brings me to tears and just touches my heart. Um, that I have a man that prays for me every single day, not only me but my kids for our domain, for our safety every single day. That is such a blessing and just fills my heart with joy. Um, but in um so love you, babe. I thank you for that every single day.
SPEAKER_00And I love you too for that. Thank you. You know, and sh because I know my baby, she prays for me too.
SPEAKER_03I do.
SPEAKER_00You know, constantly is praying for me, and this has boosted our relationship, it has empowered our relationship with one another and and and and and our children see it. And we want to create something, we want to create uh and foster a positive environment that our children see. You know what I mean? A loving environment that they can thrive in and feel the power of God.
SPEAKER_02Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_00You know.
SPEAKER_02And so, um, in First Thessalonians five and seventeen, it encourages us with pray continually. And when we pray with our partner, we lift them up as you seek God's strength and guidance together. So, you know, that's that's important. That's right there in the word, you know, that is talking about building you, you know, guiding you. Um just so just pray continually. That is going to bless your household. Amen to that.
SPEAKER_00Amen to that.
unknownYes.
SPEAKER_00And then we're moving on to our next segment, which is affirming commitment.
SPEAKER_02Okay. So let's talk about how prayer can help you affirm your commitment to one another, Eric.
SPEAKER_00Amen. You know, prayer is an act of surrender, showing that you acknowledge God's sovereignty over your relationship. That is a big thing right there. God is a sovereign God, you know, and that the fact that we surrender, acknowledge that we surrender, to surrender to God is a big deal. That means that we are letting go and letting go of control and saying, God, we acknowledge that you are the most high. And we can't do it without you. We need you, God. And we give it all to you, Lord, which is really, really important. You know, truly important. So I acknowledge I I not acknowledge, but I would suggest to you all every day, be willing to give it all to God every day. Every day you've got to do a heart check and be willing to give it to God and trust Him. You've got to surrender daily because every day we're dealing with things.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, that's good. So I know in Colossians 3 and 15 it says, Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart. So praying together, reaffirm your dedication, not just to one another, but to God's purpose for your life.
SPEAKER_01Amen to that.
SPEAKER_02That's good.
SPEAKER_01That's beautiful. That's beautiful.
SPEAKER_02So segment five, seeking strength and challenges.
SPEAKER_00Amen.
SPEAKER_02So let's talk about that a little bit, Eric.
SPEAKER_00Okay. So every relationship faces trials. And God knows every relationship faces trials. I used to hear from people all the time, you and Shars don't ever argue. Y'all don't ever have no problems. Y'all got a perfect relationship.
SPEAKER_03Right, yeah.
SPEAKER_00But I'm here to tell you, Eric and Shars have had problems.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_00Ding ding ding, world. We've had problems. Just like everybody else.
SPEAKER_03Like everybody else.
SPEAKER_00And we've had to fight, and it's been hard work. You know what I mean? I thank God. But it's prayer and consistent prayer and consistent work and consistent forgive me.
SPEAKER_04Yep.
SPEAKER_00Grace and forgiveness.
unknownYes.
SPEAKER_00Getting on my face before God, asking my wife to forgive me, and vice versa.
SPEAKER_04That's right.
SPEAKER_00You know what I'm saying? You gotta you gotta have a heart and a willingness to do so. You know what I'm saying? And ask God to strengthen you. You know, only God can navigate you through these challenges. We can't do it on our own. When we try to do it on our own, that's when we fail.
SPEAKER_02That's right. That's good. That's so true. And also in Isaiah 41 and 10, it encouraged us to not fear, stating, do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you.
SPEAKER_00Amen. That's beautiful. Yes. I like that scripture. You know, in a moment of difficulty, leaning on prayer allows couples to draw strength and courage from God's unwavering support. You know, anytime you're in a difficult situation, a hard situation, when you're struggling, the first thing that I just want to remind you to do, the first thing, pray. I want you to immediately pray. I want you to catch hands and pray. Pray. And that will get you back on the path of being able to deal with your difficult circumstance.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_00Instead of separating, because the enemy wants you to separate. He wants you guys to separate from one another.
unknownThat's true.
SPEAKER_00I'm annoying like that, aren't I, Shari Sword? I I stay in her face and she'd be like, leave me alone. But I you know what? I stay in her face because I know it's important that we don't allow anything to separate us.
SPEAKER_02That's true. If you think about it, to when you're trying to separate or go off on your own, you starting, you know, you could go off on social media or you could text a friend or trying to get information from somebody who's not even in a a good relationship and they could be feeding you negative information. So it's so important to go to the source. God, I need you, God. God, you are my source. You are my healer. You you're the only one, you're Jehovah's Jrah, you're my provider, you're the only one that can heal this right now. And the enemy will use your mind to attack you, to tell you just to leave your relationship, to end it. You don't need him, you don't need her. Um, it's better off out there. The the grass is greener. Believe me, the grass is not greener. It is um artificial turf out there, right? And so um I'm here to tell you that the grass is not greener, right? It's definitely not greener, but God's grass is greener. That's right. That's right. Yeah. God created the grass.
SPEAKER_00Oh, he created the grass. That's right. Don't let unhappy people try to tell you how your relationship should be. Because they unhappy. How can someone unhappy tell you how to be happy?
SPEAKER_03That's right.
SPEAKER_00You know? Make sure you know your source. Only receive information from good sources. Amen. And make sure that you're always discerning those sources with God's word.
SPEAKER_02There you go. All right. So we got some homework for you guys. So So your homework is practical ways to incorporate prayer. So now that we've covered the importance of prayer in your relationship, let's discuss some practical ways to incorporate into your daily lives. So here are a few ways to consider.
SPEAKER_00Alright. So here are a few ways. So praying together daily. You know, if making it a habit to pray. It's something that me and Shars do. Is this important? Set time aside. It's going to build uh a spiritual foundation for your relationship.
SPEAKER_02Two, praying for each other. Regularly lift each other up by praying for one another's needs and spiritual growth.
SPEAKER_00Amen. Praying for your rel Praying for your relationship. Make it specific. You know what I'm saying? Um pray that your relationship grows in love, faith, and unity.
SPEAKER_02Okay, and number four, praying for future plans. As you look to the future, seek God's guidance on your plans together, asking for his wisdom and decision making.
SPEAKER_00And I threw this in here because I thought this was really cool. One of my brothers that I I talk with on a daily basis, my brother Seth. He threw out a scripture that said, or a scripture to me, but he asked this question. How do you know you are praying? When you are praying, you are hearing God's voice. And this is truly important to know what that when you're hearing God's voice. How does God's voice come to you, right? And there's a scripture in 1 Kings 19, verses 11 and 13, and we're reading out of NIV, and it says, The Lord said, Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by. Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountain apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord. And then the Lord was not in that wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in that earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled back his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mountain of the cave. Then a voice said to him, What are you doing here, Elijah? That's how God speaks to you in a still, gentle voice. A gentle whisper. God is not rough. God is not negative. Anytime God is speaking to you, it's going to come in a positive manner. You know, and you're going to feel the joy, the peace. Peace is going to come over you. You're going to feel love. You know? So establish your relationship in prayer, your foundation. And you're going to have that everlasting joy, love, peace, the long-suffering, those fruit of the Spirit with the Lord. Those things that will last forever. Right?
SPEAKER_02That is something of it. So just remember prayer is an invaluable tool that you can turn your relationship into a profound partnership centered on faith. And just remember to make prayer a priority, seeking God together. And um, you know, we just want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts and um listening to Anchor by by grace. And we hope you found these insights so helpful.
SPEAKER_00Yes. And we just thank you. And we really appreciate it. And don't forget to subscribe and share our episodes with someone who might benefit from these podcasts. You know, our goal is just to eradicate the world's message about marriage and just to put God back out there. That's our goal.
SPEAKER_02That's right. And until next time, may you grow closer to each other and to and to God through the power of prayer. And remember, the one who anchors you in grace is also holding you in his love and peace.
SPEAKER_00And let us end in a prayer. Father God, in Jesus' name, Lord, we thank you for this time on this podcast, God. We thank you for the message, the word, God. And we just ask God that everything learned here, God, can benefit and bless those, God, who are listening, God. And may you bless and touch their relationships, God. God, may you bring them closer to you, Lord, in Jesus' name, God. May they know you, God, and yearn for you, God. May they desire a relationship of prayer, God, both individually and in joint with their partner, God. So we just thank you for that, God. And here at Anchored Anchored by Grace, God, we are standing on that prayer with you. In Jesus' name we pray. And we thank you and we honor you, God. Amen.
SPEAKER_02Amen. And we'll see you guys next time.
SPEAKER_00Thank you so much.