74 of 76 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I now truly believe God can work miracles..., October 19, 2007
This review is from: Praying Through the Deeper Issues of Marriage: Protecting Your Relationship So It Will Last a Lifetime (Hardcover)
I now truly believe God can work miracles. I don't know what happened to my faith over the past few years...I don't know why it wavered or where it went, because it's always been strong and very present in me, even though I have never been a regular church-goer. I have always believed, and always trusted, always looked for the good and been accepting, even when bad things happened, because I knew they were part of a larger, deeper plan for my life.
Earlier this year my husband had an inappropriate relationship with a woman at work. It never got to an "affair", but it was headed in that direction. Something similar had also happened 10 years ago in our relationship (we have been together 16 years now). I had a hard time when it happened 10 years ago, but I managed to pick myself up, and after many other dire circumstances in other areas, we had healed and gotten past the previous event.
So when it happened AGAIN this year, after so long of things improving for us, I was devastated. Most of this year, I have spent in tremendous turmoil. The event came along at a time when I was doing great - and I thought WE were doing great. I had just gotten back in shape, lost 36 pounds, looked fabulous, had my art career moving along quite well. My husband had been promoted and finally was making enough money to pay our bills. The financial pressure was off, things were going better, and I thought we were both happy. I was totally blindsided when this happened.
I have been on a downward spiral ever since. I gained my weight back, have been so depressed I can hardly focus on my work, and my moods swing from extreme to extreme. I am fearful, suspicious, and I have turned into a horrible person I don't want to be. Forgiveness has not even been attempted. I have been so angry.
Although we have attempted to reconcile things, and we would have our good days, I am still in pitiful shape and I don't like who I've become. A few months ago we started attending church, which has helped somewhat, but not enough for me.
Just last week, I thought my husband was once again lying to me about something, and I went crazy, and became very, very angry. I told him I wanted him to talk to our pastor, and if he could convince our pastor this marriage was worth saving, and if the pastor could convince ME, I would work towards it. Then I quickly changed my mind, and I said, "No, skip the pastor. You are going to have to convince God to convince me, because right now I don't trust any man - pastor or not." We both went to bed angry and very upset.
The next day, I woke with a numbness in myself, and although I was still angry and bitter over our argument, I decided to do something nice for my husband. I went to take him out for ice cream. We had a good discussion. We agreed that we don't need to be fighting against each other, but instead we need to be fighting against the enemy to protect our marriage. The entire discussion centered around how we could protect our marriage.
I then went to the bookstore to get a book my husband wanted. I picked up his book, and was just wandering around when I saw this book by Stormie Omartian on a table with a ton of other books. The title was appropriate, but it was the subtitle which got my attention...."Protecting your relationship so it will last a lifetime." I opened the book to see what the writing style was like...it was easy for me to read and understand. I then read the front cover flap, and I saw the author's husband's name is "Michael", which also happens to be my husband's name. That was a good enough sign for me...I knew a miracle had just happened.
I purchased the book and I've read it all. I've shared some of it with my husband, who is also going to read it. Not only has this book given me hope, it has restored my faith totally for the first time in many years, instructed me on what to pray FOR, and how to pray for those things. It has taught me some lessons on what God wants, and how to follow His commandments better in my personal life. It has opened my heart to at least WANT to be able to forgive, and it immediately changed my attitude and outlook toward myself, my husband and my marriage. Just days ago, I was ready to split apart, but now, after reading this and having the word of the spirit fill me up inside, I desire - and am praying for -total restoration of my marriage.
Thank you, Ms. Omartian, for writing such a book. I am very particular about any books I read. I prefer simplicity and clearness, rather than the use of big words and hard to understand verses that I have to look up meanings for. I prefer for the reading to just easily flow - and this book does just that. Lord knows, I didn't need anything difficult to understand or hard to deal with at this point in my life!
I also thank Jesus for making it appear in front of me just when I needed it - that is a true miracle!
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