Achieving Marital Bliss

These weekly devotionals I will be posting come from and are copyright to Pam Iannello, my pastor's late wife who went home to be with the Lord on June 18, 2008.


I'm going to be doing the Marriage Series for the next few weeks not only for you, but mainly for myself. I realize that there is so much I need to learn before I am married and that God's not done stitching my inward attire to make me presentable to Matthew. I've been trying to stitch my inward dress myself and I've made a mess of it. I never was good at sewing. But now I'm handing the needle back to God because I know He can take my mess and turn it into something beautiful that will cause Matthew to turn cartwheels.



This devotion is part of the "Planning a Successful Marriage" series.

As we continue on with our study of Psalm 45 and the subject of marriage, let's begin today with verses 3-5, where we listen in on the advice the king was given by the psalm writer. Such is the advice every king or every man is given in order to secure his bride....

Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty. And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things. Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies; whereby the people fall under thee.

The King is instructed to array himself in the majesty of a warrior prepared for battle. After all, what bride would feel safe with a man who is not equipped to adequately fend off all enemies? As is the case with Christ, the sword is a crucial part of the King's formal attire. What a picture this text is of Jesus coming for His bride! The Bible says He rides with the virtues of truth, meekness and righteousness - three very essential and striking qualities in a groom! His quiver is also full of the arrows of conviction, which will protect his home from the dangers of compromise. Ladies, we must equally instruct our daughters to both recognize and choose to marry a man with Christ like qualities, instilling in them a desire to wait for such an excellent mate. A woman's heart should be won by a man's sword, not by a man's charm.

Actually, all the way down to verse 9 in Psalm 45, we find that words of advice are spoken to the king, the groom. And then in the remainder of the psalm we find that words of advice are addressed to the royal bride. Verses 6-8 listed below provide us with a picture of how the king is to reign, how he is to live and what kinds of choices he is to make, and the fruit of those choices....

Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre. Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad.

First of all, there is to be a deep-rooted respect for God's throne, a reverent attitude toward the Lord that should reign supreme in the groom's life. It should be a pattern that can be clearly observed in each step he takes, without a shadow of a doubt accompanying his testimony. Wise is the mother who will teach her daughter to closely observe the habits of the gentleman she is interested in - for an extended period of time! How does this young man feel about the Lord? Does he take God's business seriously? Would he do right if your daughter were not around or is his walk with God just a show for her benefit? Does he love what God loves and hate what God hates? How is he expressing his convictions, if at all?

Next you'll notice within our text that the king has hold of a RIGHT scepter... Did you know that the scepter was an even higher sign of royalty than the crown? It was usually only held by the king on solemn occasions.... Contrary to popular belief, marriage IS a solemn occasion! Young people should take matrimony seriously, and they'll need the help of the Holy Spirit to do so. You see, ladies; the Holy Spirit is to govern a Christian young person's life. The Spirit of God would lead Christians to look to the cross, discouraging them from sin while at the same time giving them a strong affection for the beauty of holiness. Teach your daughters to seek after a man who highly respects the throne of God and the institution of marriage - a king who has tight hold of the RIGHT sceptre!

As a single woman, I fell for a man who was not mindful of the things of the Lord, and united myself to someone who wasn't very sober minded about marriage either. He was a charming, good-looking guy who had hold of the wrong scepter, and it grew to be a very stressful season in my life as a newly married young woman. Needless to say, our home was not governed by righteousness because sin reigned in my husband's life and prevailed in our relationship. We literally opposed one another continually. It was a time of mourning rather than marital bliss, just as the Bible said it would be...

Proverbs 29:2
When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.

Ladies, if married couples would be anointed with the oil of gladness, then the king must uphold the right scepter. Yes, the one that should govern the home must have a tight hold of godly principles. There is nothing sweeter to a bride than the loving leadership of a faithful man who treats his marriage and wife with honor. These are the characteristics of a just governor and one who loves righteousness. And there is nothing more pleasurable to a righteous king than a servant that submits sweetly to his authority. By the way, dear wife, what will it mean for you to act in behalf of truth, humility, and righteousness at home?

Mothers, in preparation for married life, see to it your sons learn to respect God and put Him first in their lives, at all cost. Then teach them to select the RIGHT sceptre and keep tight hold of it, never letting go of truth for one second of compromise! To uphold righteousness is to attract the right kind of wife… In addition, please do everything you can to ensure your daughters end up with a man who has been trained to do the same, otherwise your children will be miserable for the rest of their lives and their marriages will not succeed! We want God's anointing on their wedding day, amen? We want to see the oil of gladness upon both bride and groom. The only way any of us can achieve marital bliss is to put God in His rightful place in our individual lives - that being on the throne of our hearts! Then it is that husband and wife are both conformed to the image of Christ when they are properly united to their Savior. Ladies, this is what sets certain marriages above others as they stand as examples of right living, sent out of the ivory palaces and into a world that chooses to ignore the Lord and His counsel. Not only can our marriages be an avenue of God's blessings upon our lives, but they can also be a testimony to those who need to know there is a RIGHT way for two people to build a home - and it must be God's way!

Hebrews 1:9
Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

God Bless,
Pam
Isaiah 60:1&2
Copyright 2000 Pamela A. Iannello
Revised 2003 Meet Ms. Pam

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