Remain in me

For the past 15 years of marriage with my beautiful wife, we had each been reading the Bible on our own but never really together—until one day I asked the Lord, “How can I remain in You all the time?”

He didn’t answer me the whole day. I felt like a nagging child, asking again and again. That night, as my wife and I got into bed to start our usual Bible reading, she opened her daily devotional, and it had this verse: John 15:4-7.

My wife said, “You have to see this!” We read it together:

“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”

Then I heard Him say to me:

“If you remain in my love, I’ll remain in you.”

At that moment, I had a vivid memory of our wedding day and the commitment we made to Him.

God is beautiful—He made my heart smile. We finally read the Bible together, He was making me wait the whole day for this.

The next day, my wife called me on her way to work and told me she felt even more in love with me when we spent time with Him together.

I heard His whisper again:

“The covenant you made with me on your wedding day is the love you remain in. This is how all marriage covenants work. I grant you my love and cover you with my love in marriage, and you remain in that love. People break my heart when they don’t remain in that love and lose each other. Remain in me.”

I was then reminded of Ephesians 5:25-33:

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

This is for married Friends, keep the covenant and remain in His love.