The Imperfect Spouse

My wife and I have been leading several couples through the DVD series "The Sacred Marriage" recently. It's been a wonderful series that I think any marriage would benefit from. One of the things that has jumped out at me about it is the concept of the "perfect spouse." Anyone who's married has to chuckle when they hear this phrase because they know there's just no truth to it. If you're goal is to find a spouse who's perfect, you might be looking for quite some time. Every spouse, as we all know, has their imperfections, flaws and shortcomings. But think for a moment about how maybe God wants to use your spouse's shortcomings to help you grow as a person. And how He wants to use your shortcomings to strengthen your spouse. As I look back at my own marriage of 21 years, God has used things in me to help my wife, and visa-versa. God didn't intend the shortcomings of your spouse to irritate, frustrate and annoy you, but to help you change in areas that He desires you to, by using your spouse. The next time you want to point out your spouse's imperfections and flaws, maybe you should take a look at yourself, and see how the Lord wants to use them to help you grow and change :)