South Central Conference Youth Department

Submitting Your Married Life to the Lord's Timetable
Deborah Raney & Tobi Layton
Contributing Writers PART II
A fresh perspective…
Tobi Layton, married 4 years

Like anything else in marriage—or in life—we need to find the balance between the extremes. Of course, God knew that when he made us for each other, and as the years go by, Ken and I have learned to appreciate each other’s perspectives on time. I’m getting better about respecting his schedule, and he’s learning to slow down and enjoy watching the flowers grow with me.

Ecclesiastes 3 tells us there is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven. It helps to know that life is a series of seasons and that there is a time and place for hurrying as well as a time and place for kicking back a little, even sometimes for procrastinating. No matter how we try to hurry it, winter takes its own sweet time melting into spring. And no matter how much we attempt to slow it down, summer always seems to go by too quickly.

Ultimately, we have no control over time. As difficult as it can be to wait, as ardent and urgent as our desires may feel, everything happens in His time and according to His purposes. And that’s a good thing. Psalm 31 says it best: But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in your hands… (verses 14-15a). I can’t think of more capable hands to hold my schedule and my marriage. In fact, it kind of has me feelin’ groovy.

Discussion:
Read Isaiah 55:8-11 and James 4:13-15

1. If you had to choose a theme song for your life, what would it be? Could you choose a theme song for your spouse?

2. Do you and your spouse struggle with different schedules and different attitudes about time issues? If you’ve been married for several years, how have your attitudes about schedules changed? If you are newly married, how would you like to see your schedules changes? Your attitudes about time?

3. Is it difficult for you to trust God with your schedule and with timetables for events in your life? Can you think of ways God has proven himself in the past to be more than capable of “handling” the timetable of events in your life?

4. Have you ever tried to “force God’s hand” instead of waiting on His timing? What were the results?

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Email your questions to Pastor Griffin