Cultivating An Unselfish Marriage

In summary of Philippians 2:4 it says, “Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.”

Bottom Line:

Look out for one another's interests, not just my own.

What this means to me:

I should not always get caught up in my own world and plans.  I need to take an interest in others and be happy to help them with their plans.  One area to not lose focus on (especially with my busy schedule) is my marriage.  Marriage is one of those areas in which adjustment in life needs to take place. Change is happening all the time. Changes could be in the stages of children as the grow, changes in jobs, changes in health, changes in financial situations. When circumstances change in life, both my wife and myself will need to make adjustments to keep our marriage on track. In fact, simply being two imperfect people building a life together requires making adjustments for one another.  A healthy growing marriage will always demonstrate the ability to make adjustments for one another. At its core, it’s really about being me being unselfish. God will teach this to me through my marriage.  Some practical ways I can become less selfish and make positive adjustments is to think about what wife needs needs most. The Bible says, “Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too” (Philippians 2:4 NLT). Unfortunately, my schedule can crowd out what are my wifes needs.  Next I need to be able to submit, so that I can adjust to her needs.  This means often giving up what I really want in order to meet her needs. Ephesians 5:21 says, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” As a husband I should lead the way in service to her. It’s in the little daily decisions where I adjust and meet her needs where my genuine love can be expressed.  The test of my love toward her won’t be what I say, but more about how I can demonstrate it. This means I need to treat my wife as Jesus would. Making this decision will change everything. The definition of mature love is to treat other people as Jesus would. Jesus is our best example when it comes to love. “This is how we know what love is: Christ gave his life for us” (1 John 3:16a GNT). I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to apply this in my marriage and if I do, my marriage will be incalculably better.  In summary, I need to constantly take a more active interest in the lives of others, especially my wife.