Part 2: In Sickness and In Health...of your child

Here are the things that Kempton & I strive to do to preserve our marriage.

Only by God's strength, We say “YES” to…
1) Praying together. As soon as we wake up, we ask the Lord for strength for the day and for the grace to walk in the Spirit. (Ephesians 6:18)

2) Daily getting in the Word together. We have to juggle in this area since we have young children. Most of the time it's before the kids get up. Lately it's been after the kids go to bed. There are some days that it doesn't happen, but this is our regular goal that we strive for. (Psalm 1:2)

3) Overflowing at all times! We love to share with each other what God is teaching us individually through His Word. We do this as we're getting ready for the day, playing with the kids, eating a meal, etc. This has been such a pillar as we strive to have a Christ-centered, God-exalting home. Most of our times in the Word together are full of overflowing onto one another. The grace & goodness of our Lord and the new insight that we receive from Him calls for much excitement in our conversations. (Col 3:16-17)

4) Confessing sins to one another. This area is definitely the hardest, but it produces the most beautiful results. Each time we confess our sins to one another, the Lord blesses our marriage to grow closer in oneness and unity. We both know what each other struggles in the most and we try to pray for those specific areas regularly. Only God knows ALL the sins that we have committed. However, the times when we were both transparent and confessed some of our ugly & filthy sins, God has met us in a powerful way and strengthened our marriage through it. (James 5:16)

5) DATE NIGHTS!!! When Christian was a baby and had more medical issues, we often could not have others care for him. So, Kempton & I would have "In house"date nights. We would put Christian to bed and then order take-out from our favorite restaurant. We enjoyed our relaxing yet romantic evenings at home. Over the years, the Lord has blessed us to be able to go out for date nights and have either grandparents or friends care for the kids. Because it still can be a handful caring for both Christian & Carysse, we tend to put Christian to bed 1st & then go out for a later date night. Christian goes to bed at 7:30 so we have a babysitter come over and she just has to care for Carysse. I know date nights may be difficult for some of you because of your child's needs, but pray for the Lord to give you creative ideas to make it happen. Set aside the time whether it's weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly...JUST DO IT!!! (Song of Solomon 2:16, 7:10)

6) Not neglecting the Body of Christ. God has called His children to love one another, serve one another, & encourage one another. We are not exempt from these commands just because we have a child with special needs. However, with Christian's needs, we are not able to attend many of the church events as a family. Praise the Lord that we are at a church that serves Christian on Sunday mornings so that Kempton & I can worship together. Because we love to be with God's people, we decided to host many events in our home. This gives us an opportunity to serve the body as a family unit and not have to be concerned about trying to find care for our children. This has been a huge blessing and a source of joy for our family. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

I know this is a long & wordy list, but it's certainly not exhaustive. I hope it helps & encourages someone. Kempton & I are definitely not perfect in any of these areas. God has been so faithful in taking our little insufficient efforts and producing good, spiritual fruit for His glory and the benefit of our marriage & family.