To Love Like He Does

She held his hand like she never wanted to let him go.

SACRIFICIAL LOVE

“She held his hand like she never wanted to let him go,” my husband told me quietly one evening. It had been a tough day. A co-worker whom my husband deeply respected was losing his battle with cancer. Russ and his wife had stopped by the office to pick up his things and say goodbye. He was a tremendously talented man, father of three young children, and husband of a beautiful wife, with a contagious passion for life.

My husband’s out-of-character words came to my mind as I cut the grass the following afternoon.

YOU ARE DEEPLY LOVED

“Lord, is that what my husband wants—to know he is so deeply loved that I never want to let him go?” The question simmered for a couple of weeks until one afternoon, a friend asked me how I was doing. When I hesitated and shrugged, she asked again, not letting me off the hook with a quick “fine.”

“I’ve been in more pain than usual,” I admitted, “and I’m retreating from the world again. Communicating is difficult when the pain is bad, and sometimes, it requires more energy than I’m willing to invest.”

Saying those words aloud—willing to invest—sliced through to my soul. I hadn’t realized that selfishness had crept in with the pain until I said those three words out loud. I wondered how often I expected my husband to know what I was feeling, to understand my frustration, loneliness, and isolation, and to somehow figure out, without being told, how difficult communication can be for me when the pain is bad.

Too often.

I expected my husband to read my mind, but he can’t.

Though God knows every word I’m going to say before I say it, even He wants more than that. He longs for an honest relationship with me, to spend time with me, to come to Him in prayer, to sit at His feet, and rest in His presence. And if that is true of God, how can it be any less true of my husband?

Suddenly, my husband’s words made sense.

We all long to be loved.

My silence wasn’t just isolating me; it was isolating my husband, too, cutting us off from one another. My husband longed not only for my words but also for my touch, to know that he is loved—deeply, personally, and intimately.

Like I never want to let him go.

PRAYER

Father, You know everything we are feeling and thinking, yet You love it when we share with You. Help us to share honestly with our loved ones—to be heard and to hear what they are saying, too. Thank You for the gift of our spouses. May we love them as You love us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION

• How much do you think your spouse knows about how you are feeling on a day-to-day basis?
• Can you name a time when you have isolated yourself from others?
• What would you like to share with God today?

INVITATION

If you’re looking for a place to start a conversation with your spouse, take a look at Words Are Powerful. Spend some time with your spouse talking through the questions.