"A Spouse Who Prays" | A Guide for Praying for Your Beloved
/CARISSA PLUTA
Prayer is the best gift we can give our spouses.
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When a man and a woman enter into the sacrament of marriage, they enter into a sacred relationship, through which God can dispense His grace and divine life.
Husbands and wives can strengthen this relationship through personal prayer, but also have a responsibility to help one another through intercessory prayer.
Intercessory prayer for your husband is a unique act of love and an active participation in the graces of the sacrament.
However, if you are like me, without a concrete intention to pray for--like an urgent request or difficulty-- intercessory prayer may seem difficult to approach.
I want to follow in the footsteps of the saints who prayed fervently for their spouse and want our marriage to fully reflect the light and love of our Creator, but I don’t always know how best to pray for my husband.
Even after four years of marriage, I struggle to recognize and pray for his specific spiritual needs.
I craved guidance to learn how to pray for my husband well and I found a lot of support through Katie Warner’s book A Spouse Who Prays. This book offered an easy-to-use framework for fruitful intercessory prayer that will benefit both you and your husband.
It is formatted as a weekly journal that takes the reader through praying for an increase in the theological virtues, the cardinal virtues, the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit, and more--all of which are vital to a healthy and holy marriage.
Each virtue, fifty-two in total, is accompanied by a bible verse and a saint quote to reflect on, and a prayer you can personalize for your spouse.
You can even use this book to create a spiritual bouquet for your husband by using the journaling spaces provided for each virtue and keeping track of the ways you’ve prayed for him during the week. When you’re done, you can give him the book as a tangible sign of your prayers and the grace God has poured out on him.
Carving out time each day to pray for the specific needs, especially the spiritual needs, of your beloved is a beautiful and efficacious way to deepen the graces given to you through the sacred covenant established on your wedding day.
Praying and opening your heart to the movements of the Holy Spirit is what will transform your marriage and let you and your spouse become saints.
