Couples Night - Part 3

His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. There is answer when our hearts don't condemn us in the light of God's commandments. Then we come to God with such a confidence and whatsoever we ask we receive of him because we keep his commandments, even the commandments concerning marriage.

But in its context there's far more to this verse than just that prayers will be answered if you're right with God. In its context there's so much more. You see it's speaking of the prayers of a father and a mother, a husband, a wife over their lifespan when they pray together it's more praying for their children than anything else.

Your prayers are more for your child if you're a saved man and woman than anything else you pray for to God as the children, the greatest responsibility God places in your hands once you're married as the children. And you will find that most of your prayers earnest true prayers from the heart from then onwards as husband and wife before those children over your life. That your prayers be not hindered.

I want to read something to you and I want you to all listen very carefully. Oh how our prayers will be hindered when we pray for our children if we were not holy in our marriage. When we pray for our children how much of it when we're forced to pray for our children how much of it is for God to undo the damage we've done through the influences of our lives upon our children when we failed in front of them.

When we failed in our marriage things they witnessed. Oh how much is to undo the damage our lives did in our children's lives. I'm not talking about the normal prayer but when you're forced to pray father how much of it is the result of your failures.

How can you expect God to answer your prayers for your children to be holy. You pray that mother when they leave and get married you pray that father oh that they'll be holy in Christ like. How can you expect God to answer your prayers for your children to be holy and utterly Christ like if you didn't show them that it's possible through the example of your life.

Even in marriage especially in marriage. That your prayers be not hindered if you don't obey God concerning what he wants you to be wife what he tells you to be. It weighs a lot.

I was in the town a while back. A lady asked to see me and I was unable to see her so they squeezed in this little time because she persisted. She came to the home where I was staying.

They put me in the lounge sat with her and after a while as she sat there weeping she spoke and said I I have a daughter who married a young man and he told us he was saved. He convinced us he's born of God. He's a Christian and so he married my daughter and there's been nothing but sorrow.

And now he doesn't want her anymore he wants to divorce. What can I do she said? What am I going to do? After a while I said lady could I shock you? Could I ask you is it not possible that there's two sides to the story? Is it possible that it's not altogether his fault? You say he's not saved and you thought he was saved but he couldn't be saved if he wants to divorce your child. Is it possible that your daughter had something to do with that he doesn't want her? Is it possible that it's not just that he's unsaved because there's problems in the marriage? Is it possible that your daughter has a lot to do with this? That he doesn't want her? It's not just him.

And she sat back in shock at first and then tears came down her face. And she said these words. It is so.

I didn't want to admit this but it's her fault. But the worst part sir is I'm to blame. You see I was not the example I should have been in the home to my daughter of how a wife should be, how a Christian wife should be.

I gave the wrong example to her. She treats her husband as I treated mine and I only know now how unhappy my husband must have been. He had grace not to throw me out.

It's my fault sir. I gave her the wrong example of what a mother should be, what a wife should be. She's just as I was.

She's just being what her mother was in marriage. Now that shocked me what that woman said. That your prayers be not hindered.

When it comes to your children's marriages collapsing tell me is she like you? Is she like you lady? What you showed her, the example. That your prayers be not hindered. If you couldn't prove it to them in your life.

How hindered your prayers are going to be for them to live the life that you couldn't prove to them is possible in marriage. I was in a town where there was this godly woman and oh what a woman of God she was. She stood out as a sore thumb amongst all God's people.

Years went by, years and years and years and I returned to that town. Her little children had grown up. They had children of their own and this godly woman was old now.

I stayed in the home of her daughter while I was preaching in the same town now some 28 years later and they brought the old godly woman down for one meal and after the meal when she left I said to the daughter, you know your mother staggered me when I was in this town many years ago. Her life, her Christ-likeness, her gentleness, it's like she has no ability to be unkind. There's nothing but kindness flowing out of her no matter who has been spoken of, no matter who does wrong.

There's just this inability to say an unkind word about anyone.