I've Already Failed!

I keep getting these emails and seeing everyone's comments about the "30 Day Husband Encouragement Challenge." Honestly, I've been avoiding it. I have good intentions but I really just don't want to make the effort. (Yes, Matt. 12:34"out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." UGH!) Today, I read a comment that suggested I got check out a blog of a girl I knew in college. So I did, and in her blog Stacey extended the invitation for everyone to join her in the challenge. I feel like God might be trying to tell me something... So, I've decided it's time. My husband definitely needs it and I need to get my heart right. So today is August 1st and it looked like a good day to start.

In case you're not familiar with this challenge, you can go to www.reviveourhearts.com and click on "30 Day Challenges" or you can just click my links on this page. Here are the rules as stated on the website.

Here's the 30-Day Encouragement Challenge...for the next 30 days:
* You can't say anything negative about your husband ...to your husband...or to anyone else, about your husband.
* Say something that you admire or appreciate about your husband...to your husband...and to someone else, about your husband!

Then each day, they give you something else to work on. Unfortunately, I didn't decide to do this until later in the afternoon, and I knew I had already said something negative to someone else about my husband. But I thought I had to start somewhere so I would just start this afternoon. Guess what? I think it's been 6 hours since then, and I've already failed just trying to follow the basic rules. I haven't even made it to the extra stuff today!

Do you have any idea how hard it is to not say anything negative? In case your wondering...negative means: (I thought I'd better look it up since I can't say "anything negative."

• marked by denial, prohibition, or refusal
• lacking positive qualities; especially : disagreeable
• marked by features of hostility, withdrawal, or pessimism that hinder or oppose constructive treatment or development
• not affirming the presence of a condition, substance, or organism suspected to be present

In other words, Ephesians 4:29 "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."

Wow! I've definitely failed already, so I'm calling a "do-over." I'm going to get a fresh start tomorrow morning! Until then, I'm going to pray that God will help me to tell Lloyd what he means to me and the only words that come out of my mouth will be ones that will benefit him and build him up.

Let's do this together! If you haven't ever done this challenge before, it's time and you know it. If you started and didn't finish, start again. If you've completed this, please share how God changed you and your husband through this experience. Most of all, let's pray with and for one another on this journey to even better marriages!