Monday's Marriage Moment -- Withholding Nothing

Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.
Matthew 10:8

William McDowell sings a beautiful song entitled "Withholding Nothing". The lyrics say: I surrender all to You. Everything I give to You -- withholding nothing, withholding nothing. Those are powerful lyrics sang to an even more powerful God. It should be our determined purpose to surrender our lives to Him and hold nothing back. That sounds so beautiful and simple, but the reality is that it takes fresh surrender on a daily basis. It is not easy. You know how I know that it is not easy? Because we still struggle not to withhold things from people on a regular basis. Even more specifically, we can withhold things from our spouses. If they upset us or do things we disapprove of we withhold things from them. Some of us withhold communication. If we are mad at them we may get quiet or not speak to them for a while. Some of us withhold acts of kindness or love. Perhaps we don't cook for them or treat them nicely when we are upset with them. Others of us even withhold intimacy. They know if we are upset not to even suggest times of oneness. How can we sing that we will withhold nothing from God, and yet, withhold things we promised we would give to our spouse? In Matthew 10, Jesus has called the disciples, and He gave them something that He also gave to us: power. He gave them power over unclean spirits and the power to heal. Often we think of this power only in terms of physical illness and demonic forces, but I want to let you know that you have power over emotions as well. He gave you power over anger, bitterness, and unforgiveness. He gave you power over a bad attitude and power over selfishness. He gave you power to overcome every emotion and withhold nothing from not just Jesus but your spouse also. See, withholding things like communication, intimacy, and kindness from your spouse until they do what you want is emotional blackmail. Jesus gave you the power freely. It cost Him His life, but He gave it to you freely. Appropriate it well. If you have been withholding things from your spouse, repent and move forward. With the help of the Holy Spirit you can live and love freely. Determine this week to withhold nothing.