During my fire service career, emergencies responded to sometimes turned out very different than we thought we were responding to initially. A car crash that turned into a natural gas explosion of a home, a grass fire that turned into an attack on my crew, a heart attack that turned into a massive commercial fire, or a fire alarm that turned into a suicide by police officer. Just like the saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover”, circumstances are not always as they first appear.

Firefighters must make the best decisions based on the information they have very quickly. They must also be continually looking and evaluating what they are facing in an emergency. Expect the unexpected and be ready for almost anything! In our marriage we must also be paying attention to our spouse, our relationship, the actions of others and our own actions and thoughts. Especially look out for the subtle distractions that the devil uses to attack you and your marriage.

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. – 1 Peter 5:8 NIV

Emergency shutoff at a gas station to prevent a dangerous fuel fire.

Just because things are quiet doesn’t mean all is well. There is often a brief calm just before a tornado rips through an area. I feel pretty sure attacking marriage relationships is pretty high on the devil’s to do list every day. It’s not a good day if you have to hit the emergency button in your marriage.

QUESTIONS

Q: How is your spouse doing? When was the last time you looked into their eyes and asked an open ended question that required more than a yes or no response?

Q: Do you have anyone in your life who has permission to call you out when you cross into bad territory through your actions? How is your thought life?

CALL TO ACTION

Begin cultivating an accountability partner to help your awareness and vision this week.

Go Fan that Flame!