All eyes were on the back doors of the church. The organ began playing the wedding march, and there she was in a beautiful white wedding dress.

She began her walk down the aisle toward her groom, God’s chosen man for her to spend the rest of her life with. All eyes were in tears as we watched the bride and the groom seal their marriage with a kiss.

They were finally husband and wife. I was beyond excited as I watched my friend marry the man of her dreams.

How could I become like my married friend, Stacy?

My good friends, Stacy and Logan, have now been married for a year and a half and are expecting their first baby. Their marriage is thriving on their love for God and their selfless devotion toward one another.

As I’ve observed their Christ-centered marriage and selfless love, I wanted to know how I, as a single woman, could prepare to be a selfless Christ-centered wife like Stacy.

Stacy and I met up at Starbucks, and I got my notepad out to write down what advice Stacy had to give. I wanted to glean wisdom from her so that I could better prepare myself to selflessly love my own husband one day.

Here’s what Stacy said:

1. Strive to be completely satisfied in Jesus.

• Choose to make Christ your first love above all else.
• Choose to spend the best hours of your day in His presence.

2. Choose to be selfless with your schedule and your own personal agenda for the day.

• Learn to become flexible with your own plans and agenda for the day.
• Learn to put the people around you above your own plans.

3. Be a student of the people you live with right now.

• Learn to love them and serve them in a way that makes them feel special and appreciated.
• Watch them and take note of their likes and dislikes, and learn what makes them feel most loved.

4. Manage the space that God has given you right now.

• If it’s a small bedroom or a closet or a huge mansion, choose to live in a way that is warm and welcoming.

5. Take care of your body.

• Choose to build habits now that will be a blessing to your future husband by showing him you desire to take care of yourself.
• Do things now like exercising, dressing femininely, taking the time to brush your hair, keeping your toenails and fingernails nicely kept, etc.

I think Stacy made some great points! My greatest weakness out of the five above is number four.

I have been a huge slacker in keeping my room nice and neat. Most of the time I live like a tornado just ripped through my room, picked everything up, and threw it on my bed and floor. I used to think that I could easily correct that messy habit once I was married.

Stacy reminded me that I will still be the same person I am now once I am married. I won’t magically develop neat and clean habits. If I want to be a neat and clean person when I am married, I need to start developing those habits now.

What about you?
What areas from above struck a cord?
Which area do you think you need to work on most?

I know there are many things for us to work on in preparation to be a godly wife and mother, but Stacy’s list is a great place to start!

I love how Proverbs emphasizes doing Him good even now. 

“She does him good and not evil all the days of her life.” (Proverbs 31:12) 

We are to do our husbands good all the days of our life. I’m guessing that all the days would include now! Let’s make sure we are building habits that will be a blessing to him and those around us now and in the future.

Photo Credit: FreeImages.com – Zeafonso