STUDY ARTICLE 23
Keep “the Flame of Jah” Burning
“[Love’s] flames are a blazing fire, the flame of Jah.”—SONG OF SOL. 8:6.
SONG 131 “What God Has Yoked Together”
WETIN WE COMING LEARN? a
1. How the Bible describe true love?
LOVE “flames are a blazing fire, the flame of Jah. Surging waters cannot extinguish love, nor can rivers wash it away.” b (Song of Sol. 8:6, 7) That fine way here to describe true love! And this word them can really encourage marry people: It possible for yor to get true love for each other.
2. Wetin marry people must do so their love for each other can’t get weak?
2 So long they living, marry people must work hard to love each other. For example, it possible for fire to keep burning if somebody continue putting wood on it. If nobody put wood on the fire, the fire will go off. That the same way the love between husband and wife can remain strong only if they continue to make their friendship with each other strong. Sometime, marry people can feel that their love for each other getting weak. It can happen especially when money business hard, they facing health problems, or they trying to bring their children up. So if you marry, how you can keep “the flame of Jah” burning in your marriage? In this article, we will talk about three ways you can keep your relationship strong and be happy in your marriage. c
CONTINUE TO MAKE YOUR FRIENDSHIP WITH JEHOVAH THICK
3. How strong friendship with Jehovah can help marry people to continue making their love strong? (Ecclesiastes 4:12) (Also see the picture.)
3 For husband and wife to keep their love for each other strong, they must fight hard to make their friendship with Jehovah thick. How strong friendship with Jehovah can help marry people? When marry people take their friendship with Jehovah to be important, they will follow his advice. And it will help them to avoid and overcome any problems that will make their love for each other to get weak. (Read Ecclesiastes 4:12.) People who get strong friendship with Jehovah can also do their best to follow his example. They can try hard to get quality them that he can show, like to be kind, patient and to forgive. (Eph. 4:32–5:1) When marry people show this quality them, it can make it easy for their love to get strong. One sister name Lena, who been marry for more than 25 years, say, “It easy to love and respect someone who spiritual.”
4. Why Jehovah choose Joseph and Mary to be the Messiah parents?
4 Let look at one example in the Bible. When Jehovah was thinking about who will be parents for the Messiah in the future, He choose Joseph and Mary. He choose them from among plenty other people that came from David family line. Why? Because two of them was having their own friendship with Jehovah. And also, Jehovah knew that they was coming put him first in their marriage. Marry people, wetin yor can learn from Joseph and Mary examples?
5. Wetin husband them can learn from Joseph example?
5 Joseph really follow the direction Jehovah gave him. And that what made him to be good husband. At least three different times, he receive directions from God about his family. Each time, he obey right away even when it was hard for him. (Matt. 1:20, 24; 2:13-15, 19-21) When Joseph follow God direction, he protected Mary and took care of her. Just think about what Joseph do that made Mary to really love him and respect him! Husbands, you can follow Joseph example by looking for advice from the Bible that can help you to take care of your family. d When you follow this advice, you will be able to show love to your wife and make your marriage strong, even if it mean changing your ways. One sister in Vanuatu, who been marry for more than 20 years, say: “I can respect my husband more when he look for Bible advice and apply them. It made me to feel safe, and I can trust his decision them.”
6. Wetin wives can learn from Mary example?
6 Mary was having her own friendship with Jehovah and her faith in Jehovah was not depending on what Joseph do. She knew the Bible good-good. (See the study note on Luke 1:46.) She also find time to think on the thing them she learn. (Luke 2:19, 51) We sure that Mary friendship with Jehovah made her to be very good wife. Today, plenty wives can do their best to follow Mary example. For example, One sister name Emiko say: “When I was single, I was having my own schedule to do my spiritual thing them. But when I got marry, my husband start praying for us and he use to conduct our family worship. So I start depending on him to do this thing them for me. But later on, I saw that myself need to work hard to make my own friendship with Jehovah strong. So I set time to pray to Jehovah, read the Bible, and think on the thing them I learn.” (Gal. 6:5) Wives, when yor continue to make yor friendship with Jehovah strong, yor husband them will get more reason to praise yor and love yor.—Prov. 31:30.
7. Wetin husband and wife can learn from Joseph and Mary about worshipping Jehovah together?
7 Joseph and Mary also work together to keep their friendship with Jehovah strong. They knew that it was very important for their family to worship Jehovah together. (Luke 2:22-24, 41; 4:16) It was not easy for them to do it, especially when their family was getting big, but still they do it. That fine example for marry people today! If you get children like Joseph and Mary, sometime it can be hard for you to prepare them for meeting or to set time for family worship. Sometime it can really be hard for marry people to study or pray together. But remember that when yor worship Jehovah together, it will make yor to be more close to him and to each other. So make worshipping Jehovah the main thing in your life.
8. Wetin marry people can do to get more benefit from family worship?
8 Wetin you can do if you having problems in your marriage? When you having problems in your marriage, maybe you will not want do family worship together. If that how you feeling, then yor start by talking about something that sweet and short. Yor must agree on what to study. When yor do this one, it will help yor to love each other more. It will also help yor to want worship Jehovah together.
SPEND TIME TOGETHER
9. Why husband and wife must spend time with each other?
9 Marry people, yor can also keep yor love strong by spending time together. When yor do it, it will help yor to know wetin your partner thinking on or feeling. (Gen. 2:24) Lilia and Ruslan got marry more than 15 years ago. See what they learn right after they got marry. She say: “We were thinking that we were coming to spend plenty time together but not what happen. We were busy working to the house, to our working place and later on to take care of the children. We found out that if we not find time to be together, we will not remain close to each other.”
10. How marry people can apply the advice that in Ephesians 5:15, 16?
10 Wetin marry people can do to make sure that they spend time together? Maybe yor can set time to be with each other. (Read Ephesians 5:15, 16.) One brother in Nigeria name Uzondu say: “When I making schedule for other thing them, I can put time there for me and my wife to spend together and I can’t use that time for any other thing.” (Phil. 1:10) Now let talk about Anastasia, one circuit overseer wife in Moldova. She can use her time the best way. She say: “When my husband busy with his work, I can try to do other things I need to do. Then when he free, I can be free too for us to spend time together.” But what if it hard for yor to spend time together because yor get plenty thing them to do?
11. What the different-different thing them Aquila and Priscilla use to do together?
11 Marry people can learn from Aquila and Priscilla example. Plenty Christian them way back use to love and respect them. (Rom. 16:3, 4) Even though the Bible not talk plenty things about their marriage, but it show that they work, preach, and help other people together. (Acts 18:2, 3, 24-26) In fact, any time the Bible talk about Aquila and Priscilla, it can always talk about them together.
12. Wetin husband and wife can do to spend more time together? (Also see the picture.)
12 How marry people can follow Aquila and Priscilla example? Think about the plenty different-different things you and your husband or wife can do together. It possible for yor to do this work them together instead of doing it by yourself? For example, Aquila and Priscilla use to preach together. You and your partner can plan to preach together too? Aquila and Priscilla also use to do their work together. Maybe you and your partner not get the same work, but you think it possible for yor to do the house work together? (Eccl. 4:9) Anytime you and your partner work together, yor will get the opportunity to talk with each other and feel that yor on the same team. Robert and Linda been marry for more than 50 years now. Robert say: “To talk the God fair truth, we not get plenty time to enjoy ourselves together. I can really feel happy when I washing the dishes and my wife come help me to wipe them, or when I working in the garden and she come work with me. When we do things together it can help us to get close to each other and our love can continue to get strong.”
13. Wetin husband and wife must do to be united?
13 But remember that when husband and wife together, it not always mean that they will get close to each other. One marry woman in Brazil say: “Today, we get plenty thing them that can make us busy. And because we living in the same house, it easy to start thinking that we spending time together. I learn that just being together that not all to it. But I also need to give my husband all my attention when we together.” See wetin Bruno and his wife, Tays do to give their attention to each other. He say: “When we spending time together, we can put our phone them down and enjoy the time with each other.”
14. If marry people can’t enjoy spending time together, wetin they must do?
14 But what if you and your partner can’t enjoy spending time together? Maybe two of yor not get interest in the same thing them or maybe yor can make each other vex when yor together. Wetin you can do? Think about the fire we talk about before. When you light fire, it can’t just get big like that. For it to get big, you need to keep putting wood on it. That the same way yor must try to spend small-small time together every day. Try to do something that two of yor can enjoy doing. And avoid thing them that will make yor to get vex with each other. (Jas. 3:18) When yor doing this thing them small-small, yor will see that yor love for each other will start getting thick again.
SHOW RESPECT TO EACH OTHER
15. Why respect important in the marriage?
15 Respect important in the marriage. It just like the breeze that can make the fire to blaze. Without the breeze, the fire will cut off quick. That the same way, if respect not in the marriage, the love can go down. But marry people can make their love strong by doing their best to show respect to each other. Also, remember that it not about whether you feel that you showing respect, but it about whether your partner feel you respecting him or her. Penny and Aret been marry for more than 25 years. She say: “Our love for each other strong because we get respect for each other. We can feel free to say anything that in our heart because we value what we say to each other.” So, wetin you can do to help your partner feel that you really respect him or her? Let talk about Abraham and Sarah examples.
16. Wetin husband them can learn from Abraham example? (1 Peter 3:7) (Also see the picture.)
16 Abraham show respect to Sarah. He listen to Sarah and think about the way she will feel about things. One time, Sarah was really feeling bad, and she explain how she was feeling to Abraham. She even start putting the blame on him. You think Abraham get vex and blast at her? No. He knew that his wife was humble and she use to support his decision them. So Abraham listen to her and find way to solve the problem. (Gen. 16:5, 6) Wetin we learn from this one? Husbands, that you can make decision for your family. (1 Cor. 11:3) But before making the decision, you can show love to your wife by listening to what she get to say. It important to do this one especially if the decision will affect her. (1 Cor. 13:4, 5) Maybe your wife will be feeling bad sometime and she will want tell you how she feeling. You will show that you respect the way she feeling by listening to her good-good? (Read 1 Peter 3:7.) Angela and Dmitry been marry for almost 30 years now. She explain how her husband can show respect to her: “My husband, Dmitry can always be ready to listen to me when I vex about something or when I just feel like talking. Even when I talk to him rough way, he can be patient with me.”
17. Wetin wives can learn from Sarah example? (1 Peter 3:5, 6)
17 Sarah show respect to Abraham by supporting his decision them. (Gen. 12:5) One time, Abraham wanted to be kind to the visitor them he was not expecting. He told Sarah to leave the thing she was doing and bake plenty bread for the visitor them. (Gen. 18:6) Sarah not waste time. She do the thing Abraham tell her. Wives, you can follow Sarah example by supporting your husband decision them. When you do it, you will make your marriage strong. (Read 1 Peter 3:5, 6.) Dmitry who we talk about in paragraph sixteen, explain how his wife can show him respect. He say: “I really grateful for the way my wife, Angela, can do her best to support my decision them, even if she not agree with them. If things not happen the way we were expecting it, she can’t talk bad about my decision.” Yes, it easy to love somebody who can show you respect!
18. How marry people can benefit by working hard to keep their love for each other strong?
18 Today, Satan want for marry people to stop showing love to each other. He know that if they stop showing love to each other, their friendship with Jehovah will start getting weak. But, nothing can stop true love! So let the love that in your marriage be like the love that the Bible talk about in Song of Solomon. So continue to fight hard to put Jehovah first in your marriage. Also, try to spend time together and show respect to each other. When you do it, your marriage will make people to praise Jehovah because that he the one true love coming from. And your love for each other will continue to get strong forever just like fire that you continue to put wood on.
SONG 132 Now We Are One
a Marriage that gift from Jehovah. In this relationship, husband and wife can show strong love for each other. But sometime, that love can get weak. If you marry, this article will help you to continue showing love to your husband or wife and be happy in your marriage.
b True love can’t change and it can last forever. The Bible call it “the flame of Jah” because this type of love coming from Jehovah.
c Even if your husband or wife not in the truth, this advice them here can still help to make your marriage strong.—1 Cor. 7:12-14; 1 Pet. 3:1, 2.
d For example, look at the good-good advice that in the article series “Help for the Family.” It on jw.org and in JW Library®.