Latest / Marriage Life and More and Bible Study / Spiritual Warfare in Marriage (Marriage as a Mission) Pt 2 - 349

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Spiritual Warfare in Marriage (Marriage as a Mission) Pt 2 - 349 · Marriage Life and More and Bible Study

• 0:06
  Daniel Moore: If you've ever looked at your spouse during an argument and thought, how did we get here from a conversation about dishes?
• 0:12
  Daniel Moore: You're not alone.
• 0:14
  Daniel Moore: Marriage has a funny way of turning ordinary moments into emotional Olympic events.
• 0:18
  Daniel Moore: One minute you're holding hands praying about your future, the next minute you're debating why there are 14 coffee cups on the nightstand, or why the thermostat apparently needs to mimic the climate of Antarctica.
• 0:29
  Daniel Moore: But beneath all the everyday frustrations, there's often a deeper spiritual reality at work.
• 0:34
  Daniel Moore: Because the enemy rarely attacks marriages with obvious destruction first, he usually starts with subtle division, little misunderstandings, pride, busyness, emotional distance, and the slow drift that happens when couples stop intentionally fighting for unity.
• 0:50
  Daniel Moore: That's why this week we're diving into something incredibly practical and powerful, how the armor of God applies directly to marriage.
• 0:58
  Daniel Moore: Ephesians 6 isn't just for pastors, missionaries, or dramatic spiritual moments, it's for husbands and wives trying to honor God while navigating stress, schedules, parenting, communication struggles, and those I'm not mad conversations where someone is very clearly mad.
• 1:14
  Daniel Moore: We're going to talk about how truth protects connection, how peace changes conflict, how faith shields us from the enemy's lies, and why prayer may be the most underrated weapon in a healthy marriage.
• 1:25
  Daniel Moore: The truth is, strong marriages don't happen accidentally.
• 1:28
  Daniel Moore: They're built when two imperfect people decide to stop fighting against each other and start standing shoulder to shoulder against the real enemy together.
• 1:40
  Daniel Moore: Welcome to Marriage Life and More.
• 1:42
  Daniel Moore: This is a podcast about marriage, Bible, and book studies.
• 1:44
  Daniel Moore: We interview people that have inspiring stories.
• 1:46
  Daniel Moore: I'm Daniel Moore, your host.
• 1:48
  Daniel Moore: And over here once again next to me is my beautiful co-host, my wife Michelle.
• 1:51
  Michelle Moore: Hey, hey.
• 1:52
  Daniel Moore: Thank you guys for joining us this week.
• 1:54
  Daniel Moore: Not from our show, check out our website at marriagelifeandmore.com for links to our platforms or YouTube and Rumble.
• 2:00
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• 2:03
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• 2:08
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• 2:10
  Daniel Moore: Feel free to leave a comment on our platforms, give us a thumbs up or a five-star review on Apple Podcasts, and we thank you in advance for doing that.
• 2:18
  Daniel Moore: Well, with this episode, we can officially announce that I've released another book.
• 2:22
  Daniel Moore: And this is chapters one through 39.
• 2:25
  Daniel Moore: It's a verse-by-verse study of the book of Isaiah.
• 2:28
  Daniel Moore: And you can now pick that up anywhere that you can pick up your books.
• 2:31
  Daniel Moore: It's in hardback, paperback, and ebook on Amazon.
• 2:35
  Daniel Moore: It's also available on Google Play as well as in ebooks.
• 2:39
  Daniel Moore: So go check that out if you're interested in doing verse-by-verse studies.
• 2:43
  Daniel Moore: This is a good way to jump into that.
• 2:46
  Daniel Moore: I'm working on the rest of the chapters at this time to put out a volume two, hopefully later on this year or next year.
• 2:52
  Daniel Moore: And uh so go check that out.
• 2:54
  Daniel Moore: Again, you can go to our website actually, Mary MarriageLifeandmore.com.
• 2:58
  Daniel Moore: Um you can go there and check out the links on how to purchase that as well, or just anywhere online that you can get your books.
• 3:05
  Daniel Moore: Um you can definitely go pick those up.
• 3:07
  Daniel Moore: And we'd appreciate that.
• 3:09
  Daniel Moore: Anything that you do uh stows back into our ministry here and helps us keep these episodes coming out.
• 3:15
  Daniel Moore: So again, uh it's the book of Isaiah, verse by verse study, is now available at your local online bookstores.
• 3:23
  Daniel Moore: Well, this week we're going to wrap up episode 10 that we started last week on spiritual warfare.
• 3:31
  Daniel Moore: And we're gonna go ahead and try to get through that one this week and finish it up.
• 3:36
  Daniel Moore: So this week we're going to do part two of spiritual warfare in marriage.
• 3:55
  Michelle Moore: Learning how to fight Satan and recognize his tactics isn't just something reserved for Sunday morning sermons or intense Bible studies.
• 4:05
  Michelle Moore: It's part of everyday Christian living.
• 4:07
  Michelle Moore: And honestly, if you're married, you've probably already experienced this battle without realizing it.
• 4:13
  Michelle Moore: Because spiritual warfare doesn't always look dramatic.
• 4:17
  Michelle Moore: Sometimes it looks like tension over finances, irritation over tone, emotional distance after a stressful week, miscommunication over something small that somehow turned into a two-hour discussion involving events from five years ago that neither one of you planned on bringing up.
• 4:36
  Michelle Moore: One minute you're laughing together in the kitchen, the next minute you're standing there wondering how a conversation about laundry somehow became a full courtroom trial complete with evidence, witnesses, and emotional closing statement.
• 4:51
  Michelle Moore: Well, that's the reality of spiritual warfare.
• 4:54
  Michelle Moore: It often hides in ordinary moments, and the enemy's mission is simple divide, distract, and derail.
• 5:04
  Michelle Moore: He wants division in our marriages, distraction in our walk with God, and derailment from the purpose that God has created us for.
• 5:15
  Michelle Moore: But here's the good news.
• 5:17
  Michelle Moore: As believers, we are not defenseless.
• 5:20
  Michelle Moore: God has already given us spiritual weapons, wisdom, and authority through Christ.
• 5:26
  Michelle Moore: The problem is many of us Christians own the armor but forget to wear it.
• 5:32
  Daniel Moore: So as we get started this week, and as we've mentioned, we're in part two of this episode on spiritual warfare.
• 5:39
  Daniel Moore: As we look back over our marriage and the things that we've been through over the years, the ups and downs and the hills and valleys and the mountaintops and all the the big wide map that we've been across with everything that has happened to us.
• 5:56
  Daniel Moore: Uh, do you feel like the as you like recall some of the things that's happened and recall some of the things that we've been through, uh, do you feel like there's probably a little bit of some spiritual warfare that was going on in some of that, possibly?
• 6:11
  Michelle Moore: Yeah, I I do believe that.
• 6:13
  Michelle Moore: You know, one of the things that's funny because he just moved a a little vase with some flowers so that we could see each other because we always look at each other while we're recording.
• 6:22
  Michelle Moore: And in my mind, I'm like, I can't see his face as I'm talking.
• 6:26
  Michelle Moore: And he picks him up and moved.
• 6:27
  Michelle Moore: That's how well we know each other and communicate.
• 6:29
  Daniel Moore: You read your mind.
• 6:30
  Michelle Moore: But yes, I do, I I I think there was.
• 6:34
  Michelle Moore: And you know, I didn't recognize it, and I probably to this day wouldn't still recognize some of the spiritual warfare until I read a book.
• 6:43
  Michelle Moore: Um, Frank Frank Perati Paretti, yeah, Frank Peretti.
• 6:47
  Michelle Moore: I read a couple of his books and he put it in terms that I understood what spiritual warfare was.
• 6:55
  Michelle Moore: And so I look back at those little things that you carry on your shoulders, not recognizing that's what it is.
• 7:01
  Michelle Moore: I do believe that we did have um both of us at that time.
• 7:05
  Michelle Moore: I wouldn't say all the time, but I would definitely say that we did carry it and it was around us, but we allowed it.
• 7:13
  Daniel Moore: Right.
• 7:14
  Daniel Moore: And even now, you know, since things are much, much better between us, obviously.
• 7:19
  Daniel Moore: Um, we both have a ministry together.
• 7:21
  Daniel Moore: We help we try to help other couples the best that we can with our testimonies, we still fight that spiritual warfare.
• 7:27
  Michelle Moore: Absolutely.
• 7:27
  Michelle Moore: Actually, I was getting ready to say that.
• 7:29
  Michelle Moore: Yeah.
• 7:29
  Daniel Moore: I think sometimes it's probably even worse now than it was back then.
• 7:34
  Daniel Moore: But the plus is to where we are now, we have a better way of handling it.
• 7:38
  Michelle Moore: I think not only handling it, but recognizing it.
• 7:42
  Michelle Moore: Yes, that is me, I can recognize it better.
• 7:45
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 7:46
  Daniel Moore: And that brings up to the next point.
• 7:49
  Daniel Moore: You might say, well, how do you recognize if you have spiritual warfare going on in your family, in your relationship, you know, your marriage, whatever it may be.
• 7:59
  Daniel Moore: Well, we have to remember that the enemy's greatest victories often happen when believers stop paying attention.
• 8:05
  Daniel Moore: And I think as Christians, sometimes we do kind of get in a rut.
• 8:08
  Michelle Moore: Oh, absolutely.
• 8:09
  Daniel Moore: And we get into this mode of we're just going with the flow, um, just taking the easy way or whatever, you know, and then we just don't keep our guard up.
• 8:20
  Daniel Moore: And Satan watches for those moments.
• 8:22
  Daniel Moore: That's when he likes to pounce because he kind of considers those as some of our weaker moments when he can catch us off guard.
• 8:30
  Daniel Moore: And if we do get into a situation, I think what we have to remember is the Bible tells us that that's popular scripture, we don't war against flesh and blood.
• 8:41
  Daniel Moore: We are fighting against principalities, well, the masters of the air, um, demonic forces, Satan.
• 8:48
  Daniel Moore: There's a lot of things out there that we cannot see that are around us constantly.
• 8:53
  Daniel Moore: If you could see the spiritual warfare going on above our heads right now, it would terrify you to no end.
• 8:58
  Daniel Moore: I mean, there is a constant battle going on in the atmosphere for our souls.
• 9:04
  Daniel Moore: And we forget that.
• 9:06
  Daniel Moore: And I think that because we forget that, sometimes we do let our guard down, we don't pay attention, and we leave that little hole there somewhere where Satan can get his foot in.
• 9:16
  Daniel Moore: And one of his favorite tactics is division.
• 9:19
  Daniel Moore: You know, he loves planting seeds of offense, pride, hurt feelings, misunderstandings.
• 9:24
  Daniel Moore: Sometimes all he needs is one poorly timed comment or one sarcastic response or one assumption left unchecked.
• 9:32
  Daniel Moore: If he can catch those moments, you know, marriage gives plenty of those opportunities for misunderstanding.
• 9:38
  Daniel Moore: He can just jump right in there.
• 9:40
  Daniel Moore: And we're already in that moment, we're already mad, we're always already furious and upset about what's going on in our conversation at that moment.
• 9:47
  Daniel Moore: And if Satan can get in there and stir that pot a little bit, he can make it worse.
• 9:51
  Daniel Moore: And then he can start that resentment and forgiveness, all these other things that we can start carrying against our spouses.
• 9:58
  Daniel Moore: Yeah, he can really water that and try to, you know, get it to grow.
• 10:02
  Daniel Moore: You know, some examples, a husband says something practical, but his wife hears criticism.
• 10:08
  Daniel Moore: A wife may share emotion and her husband hears accusation.
• 10:12
  Daniel Moore: Someone says, I'm fine, even though everyone in the room knows that's one of the least truthful sentences in human history.
• 10:18
  Daniel Moore: You know, suddenly tension builds, walls go up, and two people who love each other deeply begin talking like opponents instead of partners.
• 10:27
  Daniel Moore: And when we look at those types of things, that's we have to remember that's why unity matters so much.
• 10:33
  Daniel Moore: If we look in Psalm 133, one, it says how good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity.
• 10:40
  Daniel Moore: Unity is powerful because unity reflects God's heart.
• 10:43
  Daniel Moore: The enemy knows that a united marriage is dangerous to darkness.
• 10:46
  Daniel Moore: He knows that as long as you and I hold on to the truth and hold on to what's right and we stand firm on the foundation of who God is and bring that into our marriage and let that build a strong marriage, he knows that that's dangerous to his purpose, to his desires, the things that he wants.
• 11:03
  Daniel Moore: He wants to break us down so we can't help other couples.
• 11:06
  Daniel Moore: Right.
• 11:06
  Daniel Moore: He wants to break and tear us down so that we can't pour into other people and destroy our own marriages in the process.
• 11:12
  Daniel Moore: That's his whole goal.
• 11:14
  Daniel Moore: And, you know, but if if a husband and wife, if we if we pray together as couples, if we forgive each other, if we encourage one another, if we walk with God together, we become a force that Satan hates.
• 11:27
  Daniel Moore: He does not like that when we stand in unity because he knows that if it's hard enough to take one person down, it's really hard to take down two when they're unified.
• 11:36
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 11:36
  Daniel Moore: And he knows that he'll never be able to do that.
• 11:38
  Daniel Moore: But when there's division, that weakens spiritual strength.
• 11:42
  Daniel Moore: And that's why the scripture repeatedly calls us as believers towards humility, forgiveness, gentleness, and love.
• 11:49
  Daniel Moore: You know, if you look at Ephesians chapter 4, verses 2 and 3, it says, be completely humble and gentle, be patient, bearing one another in love.
• 11:57
  Daniel Moore: Make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace.
• 12:03
  Daniel Moore: You know, notice that little phrase in that verse there that says, make every effort.
• 12:08
  Daniel Moore: Unity between you and I does not happen accidentally.
• 12:12
  Daniel Moore: You know, we have to work on that.
• 12:14
  Daniel Moore: It's a continual thing that we have to make sure that we keep in front of us and stay focused on to make sure that we do stay unified even through our worst moments.
• 12:25
  Daniel Moore: We've got to stay unified.
• 12:26
  Daniel Moore: Healthy marriages don't drift into closeness.
• 12:29
  Daniel Moore: Strong relationships are built intentionally.
• 12:32
  Daniel Moore: We have to be intentional with everything that we do within our marriages, and that includes that unity that we have, which in essence gives us the strength to stand against Satan when he comes up against us.
• 12:44
  Daniel Moore: Go ahead and share that next point there.
• 12:46
  Michelle Moore: Yeah, unity isn't maintained by chemistry alone, it's protected by humility, grace, and daily intentionality.
• 12:54
  Michelle Moore: One of the biggest destroyers of unity is pride.
• 12:58
  Michelle Moore: Pride keeps score, pride refuses to apologize.
• 13:02
  Michelle Moore: Pride has to win every argument.
• 13:04
  Michelle Moore: Pride would rather protect ego than protect connection.
• 13:08
  Michelle Moore: And I feel I feel like I need to read that again.
• 13:11
  Michelle Moore: One of the biggest destroyers of unity is pride.
• 13:16
  Michelle Moore: Pride keeps scores.
• 13:18
  Michelle Moore: Pride refuses to apologize.
• 13:20
  Michelle Moore: Pride has to win every argument.
• 13:23
  Michelle Moore: And pride would rather protect ego than protect connection.
• 13:26
  Daniel Moore: I'm glad you repeated that because that I think a lot of times couples when they fight.
• 13:33
  Michelle Moore: Oh, this is me.
• 13:34
  Michelle Moore: They don't realize me in the past.
• 13:36
  Michelle Moore: As I I'm reading this, I'm I'm sitting here reading it to myself because even sometimes in our arguments now, it's like I I I want to win, you know.
• 13:46
  Daniel Moore: Well, we look at it like I'm right.
• 13:48
  Michelle Moore: Yeah.
• 13:48
  Daniel Moore: So I'm gonna keep at this until you see what I'm trying to tell you.
• 13:51
  Michelle Moore: I don't look at it as pride.
• 13:52
  Daniel Moore: But nine times out of ten, it is a prideful way to act.
• 13:56
  Michelle Moore: Yes.
• 13:57
  Daniel Moore: Because that's not how God wants us to respond to each other.
• 14:00
  Daniel Moore: But it is two-sided.
• 14:02
  Daniel Moore: We both have to put our pride down and be humble and and between each other.
• 14:06
  Daniel Moore: I'm glad you repeated that.
• 14:07
  Michelle Moore: I repeated it for myself.
• 14:08
  Michelle Moore: There's a lot of it.
• 14:09
  Michelle Moore: Because I needed to, but it also needed to be said again.
• 14:12
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 14:13
  Michelle Moore: Um, but Jesus modeled something radically different than that.
• 14:18
  Michelle Moore: Philippians 2, 3 through 5 tells us do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourself.
• 14:30
  Michelle Moore: That kind of humility is difficult in a marriage sometimes.
• 14:34
  Michelle Moore: Don't we know it?
• 14:36
  Michelle Moore: Especially when emotions are high and everybody feels misunderstood.
• 14:41
  Michelle Moore: But humility changes the atmosphere of conflict.
• 14:45
  Michelle Moore: Humility says, Hey, help me understand.
• 14:50
  Michelle Moore: Or, hey, I may have been wrong.
• 14:53
  Michelle Moore: Or I care more about us than about winning.
• 14:57
  Michelle Moore: And Jesus demonstrated that kind of servant heart and love perfectly when he washed his disciples' feet in John 13, even knowing that Judas would betray him.
• 15:09
  Michelle Moore: Think about that level of grace.
• 15:11
  Daniel Moore: Yeah, that's when we get into this mindset of wanting to be like Christ, then we have to put that pride on a shelf.
• 15:20
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 15:21
  Daniel Moore: We have to get rid of it because there's no way that either one of us, if if you or I get into a situation, a disagreement of some sort, if we aren't humble with each other, then that discussion, that that argument back and forth is probably never going to end.
• 15:38
  Michelle Moore: Well, and I think that's where the humility comes in of saying, hey, just give me a minute.
• 15:44
  Michelle Moore: Let me pray on this.
• 15:45
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 15:46
  Michelle Moore: Let me step away.
• 15:47
  Michelle Moore: Because I think a lot of times pride comes when we're upset, when we're angry, angry about something.
• 15:53
  Michelle Moore: And humility comes when you have that, I'm going to take a fresh look at this.
• 15:57
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 15:58
  Daniel Moore: And you may be thinking, well, a little pride's not that big a deal, you know, or whatever you may be thinking when we talk about this, but you got to remember why did Satan fall?
• 16:07
  Daniel Moore: Why was Satan kicked out of heaven?
• 16:09
  Daniel Moore: He had five IM statements that's recorded in Isaiah chapter 14, and every one of those had to do with pride.
• 16:18
  Daniel Moore: And that's what God kicked out of heaven because he wanted to be bigger than God, he wanted to be on a throne higher than God, and he wanted to take God's place.
• 16:26
  Daniel Moore: That was his whole intention.
• 16:28
  Daniel Moore: And all of that was because he was too proud within himself to be humble to the creator who created him.
• 16:36
  Daniel Moore: And so when it comes to our marriages, that's why it's so important that we put that pride down.
• 16:42
  Daniel Moore: Because if we don't, we're we're allowing Satan to come in and battle us and he's winning.
• 16:48
  Daniel Moore: You know, that spiritual warfare that we're talking about, pride is a huge part of that.
• 16:53
  Daniel Moore: Because when Satan comes in and tries to stir that pride up and to, again, to water it like it's a seed so that it grows between the two of us, or between two cut, you know, two people in a relationship, then that is a spiritual warfare that you're fighting at that moment.
• 17:08
  Daniel Moore: And if you allow that to overcome you and determine and define who you are as a couple, Satan wins.
• 17:15
  Daniel Moore: And so we have to make sure we stay away from letting that happen.
• 17:19
  Daniel Moore: We need to make sure that God wins in this in these relationships.
• 17:23
  Daniel Moore: You know, marriage becomes stronger when serving each other matters more than proving each other wrong.
• 17:28
  Daniel Moore: I know, you know, countless times I've seen couples that that's all they do is try to prove that each other's wrong and what they're arguing over.
• 17:36
  Daniel Moore: And that becomes the whole focus of their conversation.
• 17:40
  Daniel Moore: When they do that, they can't serve each other.
• 17:43
  Daniel Moore: They can't be the spouses that God's called them to be because they're putting that uh that priority on them being right and proving themselves and proving that the other spouse is a dummy.
• 17:56
  Daniel Moore: And you know, that's just not the way that that works.
• 17:59
  Daniel Moore: And this is another major tactic that Satan uses, and it's called busyness.
• 18:04
  Daniel Moore: And honestly, this may be one of the most dangerous because it often looks productive on the surface.
• 18:09
  Daniel Moore: You know, a list of things that can happen here, schedules get packed, work becomes overwhelming, kids' activities fill every evening, phones consume attention, conversations become rushed, date nights disappear, prayer becomes inconsistent, and before long, couples are managing life together without truly connecting together.
• 18:29
  Daniel Moore: You know, Satan doesn't always need to tempt us with something that's obviously sin.
• 18:33
  Daniel Moore: Sometimes he just keeps us so distracted that intimacy with God and with your spouse slowly fades into the background.
• 18:40
  Michelle Moore: Wow.
• 18:41
  Daniel Moore: It's that little fox conversation again.
• 18:44
  Daniel Moore: Yeah, the little bitty things that sometimes eventually becomes big.
• 18:49
  Daniel Moore: Because there's a lot of things, you know, as we just read that list there, every one of us has those things in our daily.
• 18:56
  Michelle Moore: And I think that's the one that I really struggle with a lot of times because I get so busy.
• 19:01
  Michelle Moore: And it's like when I get super busy, I get exhausted.
• 19:05
  Michelle Moore: By the time I'm exhausted, I'm like, I am not, I don't have time to read my Bible.
• 19:09
  Michelle Moore: I don't have time to pray.
• 19:10
  Daniel Moore: You can't even hardly pray when you're exhausted.
• 19:12
  Daniel Moore: Your mind doesn't work.
• 19:14
  Michelle Moore: And you know that because you've seen me.
• 19:16
  Michelle Moore: And it's long.
• 19:17
  Daniel Moore: And other people are like that too.
• 19:18
  Michelle Moore: And you know, so that one, you know, as you're reading it, it's like, okay, Lord, you know.
• 19:24
  Michelle Moore: And I think that's the reason why it's so good to put up boundaries.
• 19:29
  Michelle Moore: Like you set boundaries on yourself, knowing what you can and cannot do.
• 19:33
  Michelle Moore: And if it's going to take a lot from you, is that really what the Lord wants?
• 19:38
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 19:39
  Daniel Moore: We have to be really careful with that.
• 19:41
  Daniel Moore: Go ahead and continue because this next point goes right along with this mind frame that we're in right now.
• 19:46
  Michelle Moore: Yeah, if the enemy can't destroy your marriage, he'll often try to distract it into emotional distance.
• 19:52
  Michelle Moore: Luke 5, 16 says that Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
• 19:58
  Michelle Moore: Think about that.
• 19:59
  Michelle Moore: If the Son of God intentionally stepped away from noise and busyness to reconnect with the Father, how much more do we need margin in our own lives?
• 20:11
  Michelle Moore: We live in a culture addicted to hurry, but spiritually healthy marriages require slowing down long enough to reconnect with God and each other.
• 20:22
  Michelle Moore: That's the lesson behind Mary and Martha in Luke 10, 38 through 42.
• 20:27
  Michelle Moore: Martha stayed busy doing things for Jesus while Mary simply sat with him.
• 20:33
  Michelle Moore: Martha wasn't evil, she was just distracted.
• 20:36
  Michelle Moore: And honestly, many marriages today aren't broken because couples stop loving each other.
• 20:43
  Michelle Moore: It's just they're struggling because they stopped slowing down long enough to nurture the relationship.
• 20:49
  Michelle Moore: Sometimes the holiest thing a married couple can do is put the phones away, turn the TV off, sit on the couch together, and yes, actually talk.
• 21:00
  Michelle Moore: Not about the bills, not about the schedules, and not about who forgot to switch the laundry over, just reconnect because emotional intimacy rarely survives constant distraction.
• 21:16
  Daniel Moore: And there's so much truth to that.
• 21:18
  Daniel Moore: Because if we're distracted, there's no way, like if I have something going on and I'm just totally distracted with what's go playing on in my mind, you know, our mind is Satan's playground, as they always say.
• 21:31
  Daniel Moore: And if that's going on right now, it's hard for me to work you into that chaos that's going on in my mind.
• 21:38
  Daniel Moore: And I know you're the same way.
• 21:41
  Daniel Moore: And that presents a problem because if we are constantly keeping ourselves so entwined and wrapped up in everything going on around us, expect except for the person that's sitting right next to us, closest to us, that's our spouse, then it's real easy to, as it says here, to distract.
• 22:00
  Daniel Moore: ourselves right out of being intimate in our marriage, being close, being intentional.
• 22:06
  Daniel Moore: It's really hard to make all that stuff happen when we have all this noise going on.
• 22:10
  Daniel Moore: It's almost impossible.
• 22:12
  Daniel Moore: And so as couples, we have to learn how to turn that off sometimes and sit down and just talk and get to know each other once again.
• 22:22
  Daniel Moore: You know, I you might be surprised sometimes the things that you've missed maybe in just in the last couple of weeks or the last month that's been going on with your spouse because you haven't sit down long enough to talk to them and see what's been going on in their life.
• 22:37
  Michelle Moore: And that's a very sad place to be because when you say see what's going into their lives, it's really seeing them.
• 22:44
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 22:44
  Michelle Moore: And hearing what is going on in their life.
• 22:48
  Daniel Moore: We're looking deep inside of each other and seeing what's going on in there.
• 22:52
  Michelle Moore: Yeah.
• 22:52
  Daniel Moore: What's ticking, what's making us, you know, move right at the moment.
• 22:56
  Daniel Moore: We we have to take some time to do that and be intentional with it.
• 23:00
  Daniel Moore: And like you said, keep the bill talk and the schedule talk and the kid talk and all the work talk, all that stuff that we constantly have going on that we have to deal with.
• 23:09
  Daniel Moore: Sometimes we've got to set that to the side and and just move on.
• 23:13
  Daniel Moore: You know, busyness is dangerous because it quietly steals the moments that relationships are built on.
• 23:19
  Daniel Moore: You know, there's temptation.
• 23:21
  Daniel Moore: Satan is incredibly strategic here with temptation.
• 23:25
  Daniel Moore: He studies weaknesses.
• 23:26
  Daniel Moore: He customizes temptations differently for every person.
• 23:30
  Daniel Moore: For one person it may be lust.
• 23:32
  Daniel Moore: For another it's pride comparison angerness or emotional escape.
• 23:38
  Daniel Moore: The enemy loves offering counterfeit comfort for legitimate needs.
• 23:42
  Daniel Moore: Are you feeling lonely?
• 23:44
  Daniel Moore: Well here's attention from someone else you feeling stressed?
• 23:47
  Daniel Moore: Here's unhealthy escape.
• 23:49
  Daniel Moore: You feel insecure here's comparison.
• 23:52
  Daniel Moore: Are you feeling hurt?
• 23:53
  Daniel Moore: Well guess what?
• 23:54
  Daniel Moore: Here's some bitterness disguised as self-protection.
• 23:57
  Daniel Moore: But temptation grows strongest when we try to fight it on our own strength.
• 24:01
  Daniel Moore: That's why Jesus responded to temptation in Matthew 4 with scripture every single time he fought lies with truth and we have to learn to do the same thing.
• 24:12
  Daniel Moore: So when the enemy whispers you're not appreciated, God says you're loved.
• 24:17
  Daniel Moore: When the enemy says this marriage will never change, God says nothing is impossible with me.
• 24:23
  Daniel Moore: When the enemy comes at you and says you're alone, God says I will never leave you nor forsake you.
• 24:30
  Daniel Moore: I mean there is a lot there that we could unpack those are to stand on to I think we forget sometimes that the Bible is one of our strongest weapons.
• 24:40
  Daniel Moore: We're going to get into the the armor here in just a little bit but we just have to remember that there was an old song that we used to sing in church called Standing on the Promises.
• 24:50
  Daniel Moore: You remember that?
• 24:51
  Michelle Moore: Yeah Standing on the Promises Yeah it was the hymn in the old hymnal books.
• 24:56
  Daniel Moore: And that that song is so true.
• 25:00
  Daniel Moore: You know when that's how we should really fashion our lives and and program our daily lives as we go throughout each day is every moment that something comes up we need to make sure that we stand on the promises God God has a promise for everything that we will ever come up against.
• 25:17
  Daniel Moore: And if we stand on those promises of the word but the only way we can do that is if we know the word.
• 25:22
  Daniel Moore: So we got to be reading it.
• 25:23
  Daniel Moore: And if we're reading the word and keeping that in our heart like the Bible tells us to do then we know what those promises are and we can put those into motion when Satan comes at us and starts trying to put all this negativity in our minds to make us feel like we are nothing and that we're nobody.
• 25:40
  Daniel Moore: Our spouse doesn't love us we got all this you know crazy baggage going on and we're dragging around everywhere.
• 25:46
  Daniel Moore: That's not God's intention for us.
• 25:48
  Daniel Moore: And the Bible tells us he carries those burdens if we allow him to and so there's just a lot of truth there in in those areas to make sure that we keep God focused in our lives and in our marriages.
• 26:00
  Daniel Moore: So why don't you go ahead and go with the the next one there.
• 26:04
  Michelle Moore: You cannot consistently believe lies and expect to live in freedom that is why God's word matters so deeply in our marriage scripture renews perspective it exposes deception it reminds couples what's true when emotions try to tell us a different story.
• 26:24
  Michelle Moore: And another powerful protection against temptation is accountability.
• 26:29
  Michelle Moore: Ecclesiastics 4 9 through 10 says two are better than one.
• 26:34
  Michelle Moore: If either of them fall one can help the other up isolation makes temptation stronger community weakens secrecy.
• 26:45
  Michelle Moore: James 5 16 tells believers to confess sins to one another and pray for one another so healing can happen.
• 26:54
  Michelle Moore: Accountability isn't punishment it's protection that's one reason Joseph was able to resist temptation in Genesis 39 long before Potiphar's wife approached him Joseph had already settled in his heart who he belonged to and what he stood for.
• 27:13
  Michelle Moore: Strong marriages are built by people who decide ahead of time.
• 27:18
  Michelle Moore: We will honor God no matter what the culture normalizes.
• 27:22
  Daniel Moore: And this is being proactive if we think ahead and we pray daily God whatever comes against me today I put this in your hands please give me the wisdom to work through all of the things that may come my way that Satan may try to throw in front of us.
• 27:39
  Daniel Moore: And honestly our spouses should be an accountability partner for us.
• 27:45
  Daniel Moore: And I know that there's some situations when it comes to like pornography and different kinds of things it's probably sometimes a little bit better to have a same-sex friend or someone out of that equation to be an accountability person for you.
• 28:03
  Daniel Moore: But there's a ton of things that happen within marriage that I think spouses should be help each other be accountable for.
• 28:10
  Daniel Moore: And so just keep that in mind that if you can stay ahead of what Satan's wanting you to do, you know, staying ahead on that you're kind of expecting him to do something.
• 28:22
  Daniel Moore: So when it does happen and he tries to throw that roadblock in front of you that discernment then comes in and says hey this is not normal Satan he must be trying to attack me right at the moment we're going to stop this right now.
• 28:34
  Daniel Moore: And we go to prayer we go to the word we go to our spouse.
• 28:37
  Daniel Moore: Whatever it takes, we go to that source that we can get that accountability and that extra strength from and we utilize that at that moment.
• 28:46
  Daniel Moore: So that accountability is very important in our relationships and uh we we have to have that honesty in our life and not believe the lie Satan throws at us if we are going to be free in our relationship with our spouse and with God.
• 29:02
  Daniel Moore: You know the strongest marriages are not built on emotions alone they're built on conviction.
• 29:07
  Daniel Moore: Another key to resisting spiritual attack is staying united through shared purpose.
• 29:11
  Daniel Moore: When couples lose sight of why God brought them together they often begin drifting into selfishness, frustration and unnecessary conflict.
• 29:19
  Daniel Moore: But when husbands and wives unite around a shared mission such as serving God, building a Christ-centered home, encouraging others, raising children in truth, growing spiritually together, something powerful happens.
• 29:31
  Daniel Moore: Purpose creates momentum.
• 29:33
  Daniel Moore: That's what we see in Acts chapter 2, 42 to 47.
• 29:36
  Daniel Moore: The early church wasn't perfect, but they were devoted.
• 29:38
  Daniel Moore: They worshiped together, they prayed together, they served together and stayed connected through shared spiritual purpose.
• 29:44
  Daniel Moore: And notice this that their unity attracted God's blessing because unity creates an atmosphere where God moves powerfully.
• 29:52
  Daniel Moore: That's why Ephesians 4 3 says make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace.
• 29:57
  Daniel Moore: Not some effort not occasional effort.
• 30:00
  Daniel Moore: It says every effort healthy marriage requires intentional pursuit.
• 30:07
  Daniel Moore: It requires intentional conversations, intentional forgiveness, intentional prayer, intentional grace, intentional time together and intentional encouragement.
• 30:16
  Daniel Moore: You know as we said before relationships drift naturally but unity is built deliberately.
• 30:23
  Daniel Moore: We have to make an effort to make sure that that unity stays in place.
• 30:28
  Daniel Moore: So go ahead and finish out the next two points there for us.
• 30:32
  Michelle Moore: Yeah a thriving marriage is never accidental.
• 30:35
  Michelle Moore: It's cultivated through daily spiritual investment.
• 30:39
  Michelle Moore: So what do we do practically we choose humility over ego grace over offense prayer over panning connection over isolation truth over lies rest over endless striving and purpose over distraction.
• 30:58
  Michelle Moore: We stop fighting each other and start fighting together.
• 31:03
  Michelle Moore: And when couples do that when they choose love over pride forgiveness over bitterness and spiritual discipline over emotional reaction the enemy begins losing ground because Satan may attack unity but he cannot overcome a marriage fully surrendered to Christ.
• 31:23
  Michelle Moore: So lift your head guard your heart protect your unity pray together even when it feels awkward laugh together often apologize quickly stay soft toward God and toward each other and remember this the enemy fears couples who pray together forgive quickly and refuse to let division stand in room we are not helpless we are not fighting alone and through Christ we already fight from victory not for it.
• 31:59
  Daniel Moore: Yes amen gives us a good segue to get into what we've all been waiting for.
• 32:25
  Michelle Moore: Yes.
• 32:26
  Daniel Moore: How do we apply the armor of God in our marriage and this is something that we kind of mentioned at the beginning of this episode how a lot of times we get distracted and we forget all these tools that we have we forget all these weapons that we have and you know we have to remember that marriage is one of God's greatest gifts it's beautiful sacred refining and rewarding and sometimes it can also feel like a full contact sport with snacks and laundry involved.
• 32:54
  Daniel Moore: One minute you're praying together and talking about your future the next minute you're debating why there's 12 empty cups sitting beside the bed instead of in the dishwasher where civilized people place them.
• 33:04
  Daniel Moore: Well that's just marriage but beneath all the everyday moments there's a deeper reality that we have to recognize that marriage is one of the enemy's favorite targets and we've talked about this over and over because marriages are a covenant covenant faithfulness to God.
• 33:18
  Daniel Moore: Marriages are what forms the church when we have children we are having the future generation of kingdom builders and Satan doesn't want that.
• 33:30
  Daniel Moore: He wants to win everybody's souls over and take control of all of us he doesn't want God to have any of us or our children.
• 33:37
  Daniel Moore: He attacks us with division he puts that pride in there like we've been talking the busyness temptation emotional distance insecurity miscommunication he whispers lies he magnifies offenses he turns small frustrations into larger divides if we let him all these things that happen in our marriages believe it or not Satan probably has a hand in a lot of that it's not just a uh happening that we just all of a sudden got into a fight or whatever.
• 34:06
  Daniel Moore: There's there's something a force behind driving that.
• 34:10
  Daniel Moore: So that's why God gave us the armor of God.
• 34:13
  Daniel Moore: And a lot of times we apply this more so in our salvation walk with God that as we become a Christian we take on the armor of God but this also applies in marriages.
• 34:24
  Daniel Moore: And so what I've done here is we've as put this book together added this to the the narrative in this book.
• 34:32
  Daniel Moore: So we're going to go through these here real quick as we close up this episode this week.
• 34:36
  Daniel Moore: The first one's the belt of truth.
• 34:38
  Daniel Moore: You know as we get into the armor of God Paul starts with the belt of truth because truth holds everything else together.
• 34:45
  Daniel Moore: Without truth the armor is going to fall apart.
• 34:48
  Daniel Moore: Without honesty marriages slowly fall apart also truth in marriage means what?
• 34:54
  Daniel Moore: It means transparency.
• 34:56
  Daniel Moore: It means learning to communicate honestly instead of hiding behind sarcasm assumptions or passive aggressive silence.
• 35:02
  Daniel Moore: It means actually saying what's wrong instead of responding with nothing while aggressively cleaning the kitchen cabinets like you're auditioning for a home renovation show.
• 35:11
  Daniel Moore: Ephesians 415 says we're called to speak the truth in love.
• 35:15
  Daniel Moore: Notice the balance there truth without love becomes harsh love without truth becomes shallow.
• 35:21
  Daniel Moore: Healthy marriages need both that means we tell the truth kindly we communicate openly we stop expecting our spouse to magically read our mind because contrary to popular belief your spouse is not the Holy Spirit and sometimes truth sounds like hey I've been feeling disconnected lately or I need more support or that comment hurt me more than you realized.
• 35:47
  Daniel Moore: Truth creates intimacy because honesty creates trust even in the small things.
• 35:52
  Daniel Moore: If your spouse proudly serves a brand new recipe that tastes suspiciously close to drywall seasoning you can still speak truth with grace.
• 36:00
  Daniel Moore: You can say well I really appreciate the effort babe maybe we just won't put this one in the regular dinner rotation you know that's wisdom and that's survival.
• 36:11
  Daniel Moore: You don't get killed that way.
• 36:13
  Daniel Moore: But there's a lot to be said with being truthful and being honest in our marriages because we know that if we're dishonest and we start hiding things then we start having all these withholds that we don't allow our spouses to know what's going on.
• 36:28
  Daniel Moore: And in the end if all that becomes exposed which it usually does because the as the Bible says your sins are going to find you out you're going to be in a bad spot um if you start hiding a lot of things not being truthful and your marriage is not going to flourish like it needs to.
• 36:43
  Daniel Moore: So what's the next item there?
• 36:45
  Michelle Moore: Before you do that I before I I go into that I was thinking about you know what truth like with you is and I can remember I go back to you know as I work sometimes in a stressful atmosphere or um we've got things going on with our kids and I can take some of that on and there's times that I just like I will say hey babe I need some encouragement and when I say that I think things kind of a little bit different from you because you tell me you love me, you help me with things already and everything like that.
• 37:24
  Michelle Moore: So it it's it's interesting when you speak truth because you hear me and that's what you do.
• 37:32
  Michelle Moore: You wouldn't know that if I didn't speak that right because I need that so that the enemy doesn't attack me even more.
• 37:40
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 37:40
  Michelle Moore: And so I think it's very important as wives we can speak that truth but also don't put expectations on there or give him expectations one of the two because if you're disappointed it's just going to add more to it.
• 37:58
  Daniel Moore: Yeah.
• 37:58
  Daniel Moore: And speaking it out loud makes it become a truth.
• 38:01
  Michelle Moore: Yeah and I feel like it's very very important.
• 38:04
  Michelle Moore: I mean I and I I mean honestly you know when I'm disconnected I know when you're disconnected and we'll both discuss it and it's like hey what's going on yeah and if we're honest with each other we can work through it oh absolutely and I I I think the true thing is very very I I love that.
• 38:21
  Michelle Moore: The breastplate of righteousness the breastplate protects the heart spiritually speaking righteousness guards us from allowing sin, bitterness compromise or selfishness to take root.
• 38:36
  Michelle Moore: In marriage this means choosing integrity daily not just avoiding major sins but guarding your heart and the small moments too it's choosing faithfulness in thought attitude and behavior it's refusing to entertain emotional compromise.
• 38:52
  Michelle Moore: It's resisting resentment when frustrations pile up it's choosing grace instead of keeping score.
• 38:59
  Michelle Moore: And let's be honest keeping score comes naturally in marriage.
• 39:03
  Michelle Moore: Yes it does I unlid the dishwasher three times this week and I took the kids everywhere yesterday and I apologized first last time.
• 39:15
  Michelle Moore: Meanwhile Jesus is over here saying things like Love keeps no record of wrongs.
• 39:22
  Michelle Moore: That verse gets very real in a marriage very quickly the breastplate of righteousness reminds us to guard our hearts carefully because Proverbs 423 says above all else guard your heart for everything you do flows from it.
• 39:39
  Michelle Moore: Whatever fills your heart eventually spills into your marriage.
• 39:43
  Michelle Moore: If bitterness fills the heart harshness comes out if pride fills the heart conflict increases.
• 39:51
  Daniel Moore: If grace fills the heart peace grows so it's super important to have that breastplate because that you know that like it says out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
• 40:03
  Daniel Moore: Yes and we can let things simmer in our hearts and put on a persona that everything's okay but at the same time what's going on inside is just eating us alive.
• 40:15
  Daniel Moore: And that can create an issue where again we don't want to be honest maybe or we don't be intentional with being intimate with our relationship.
• 40:25
  Daniel Moore: It can create an issue there where it puts up a boundary that shouldn't be there and it can cause lots of issues.
• 40:31
  Daniel Moore: So we need to make sure we keep that breastplate on to protect our hearts and make sure that that does not happen.
• 40:38
  Daniel Moore: The next one here is the shoes of the gospel of peace.
• 40:42
  Daniel Moore: These shoes prepare us to walk in peace even when conflict shows up unexpectedly and conflict's going to show up.
• 40:49
  Daniel Moore: Sometimes it's over finances sometimes it's over parenting sometimes over whose system for loading the dishwasher is apparently the correct one everybody believes they're a dishwasher expert.
• 40:59
  Daniel Moore: But the gospel of peace changes how we approach conflict.
• 41:02
  Daniel Moore: Instead of trying to win we pursue reconciliation Romans 1218 says if possible so far as it depends on you live peaceably with all and that includes your spouse.
• 41:13
  Daniel Moore: A peacekeeping is not the same thing as peacemaking peacekeeping avoids conflict entirely.
• 41:20
  Daniel Moore: Peacemaking addresses conflict with humility and grace.
• 41:24
  Michelle Moore: That's good.
• 41:25
  Daniel Moore: One stuffs issues under the rug the other works through issues with love.
• 41:29
  Daniel Moore: Yes.
• 41:29
  Daniel Moore: When couples wear the shoes of peace they become quicker to apologize quicker to forgive and slower to escalate arguments and emotional warfare.
• 41:39
  Daniel Moore: Sometimes peace sounds like you know what I misunderstood you or I'm sorry for my tone or can we start over?
• 41:47
  Daniel Moore: You know those simple moments can completely shift the atmosphere of a home.
• 41:51
  Daniel Moore: And this is a big one because a lot of marriages do fight with conflict and we probably see that more often than anything when we work with couples and you and I had a marriage full of conflict at one point in time and that conflict will continue if there's not a peacekeeper in the home and both of you are not being intentional on that peacekeeping.
• 42:12
  Michelle Moore: I just want everybody to know I am the peacemaker now.
• 42:15
  Michelle Moore: You're the peacemaker peacekeeper whatever I'm both you're both I'm very I'm very laid I'm very laid back I like to keep peace in everything that comes into our home including our children and their decisions Dan is not.
• 42:31
  Daniel Moore: You're digging an awful deep hole over there.
• 42:34
  Michelle Moore: I was not it had nothing to do with pride I'm just saying I try to think the best of everyone in anything that is going on or they're doing and sometimes that's a fault.
• 42:50
  Daniel Moore: Yeah it can definitely bite you in the rear yeah but some good discernment has to go go on there.
• 42:55
  Daniel Moore: Yeah but it's very important to make sure that peace is in our home so that we can resolve those conflicts in a godly manner.
• 43:02
  Daniel Moore: Yes.
• 43:02
  Daniel Moore: So what's the next one?
• 43:04
  Michelle Moore: The shield of faith the shield of faith protects against the fiery darts of the enemy fear insecurities lies discouragement doubt and mistrust and if we're honest marriage can expose all those things at times there are seasons when finances feel tight seasons where communication struggles even seasons where life feels heavy and there are seasons where restoration feels very slow.
• 43:33
  Michelle Moore: That's when faith matters the most faith reminds us that God is still working even when emotions stay otherwise the enemy whispers this marriage will never improve and you're never gonna reconnect and you guys are too far gone.
• 43:52
  Michelle Moore: But faith says God restores God heals God strengthens and God God finishes what he starts.
• 44:02
  Michelle Moore: Hebrews 11 1 says faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
• 44:10
  Michelle Moore: Sometimes faith in marriage means believing God is moving before you can physically see the evidence yet.
• 44:18
  Michelle Moore: Amen.
• 44:19
  Michelle Moore: And sometimes it means choosing trust instead of sarcasm during difficult moments, which, depending on the conversation, may require supernatural assistance.
• 44:30
  Michelle Moore: But faith keeps most couples anchored when emotions try to pull them apart.
• 44:36
  Daniel Moore: Yes.
• 44:37
  Daniel Moore: There's some good stuff there.
• 44:39
  Daniel Moore: Yes.
• 44:40
  Daniel Moore: Our faith, there's so many things that hinges on that.
• 44:43
  Daniel Moore: And sometimes you have to live in faith.
• 44:46
  Daniel Moore: A good example of that would be if you're in a marriage and you're having problems and one spouse is wanting to fix things and wanting to make things work, but the other spouse is not on board.
• 44:56
  Daniel Moore: Uh, what do you do with that?
• 44:58
  Daniel Moore: Well, we do got to take care of ourselves, first of all.
• 45:01
  Daniel Moore: That's important and that's a godly thing.
• 45:03
  Daniel Moore: But at the same time, we also have to keep faith that Christ is going to work in that situation and that no matter what happens in the end, it's going to work out for his good.
• 45:13
  Daniel Moore: And so faith becomes a huge part of our relationship and our marriage.
• 45:18
  Daniel Moore: And we need to keep that shield of faith up and make sure that Satan can't come in and rock that faith and cause us to become a failure in our marriage.
• 45:28
  Daniel Moore: And God gives us the strength to do that.
• 45:30
  Daniel Moore: And again, he gives us the shield of faith, a piece of the armor to help accomplish that.
• 45:36
  Daniel Moore: The next one is the helmet of salvation.
• 45:38
  Daniel Moore: The helmet protects the mind, and that's important because the enemy loves attacking marriages through our thoughts.
• 45:44
  Daniel Moore: You know, he might say, You married the wrong person, or they don't care.
• 45:48
  Daniel Moore: You'll always struggle like this, or they'll never change.
• 45:52
  Daniel Moore: You know, those thoughts are dangerous if they're left unchecked.
• 45:55
  Daniel Moore: Romans 12,2 reminds us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.
• 45:59
  Daniel Moore: Salvation changes how we think, not just about ourselves, but about our spouse also.
• 46:04
  Daniel Moore: Your spouse is not your enemy.
• 46:06
  Daniel Moore: They are a redeemed, growing, imperfect person being transformed by Jesus just like you are.
• 46:12
  Daniel Moore: That perspective changes everything.
• 46:15
  Daniel Moore: Instead of labeling your spouse by their worst moments, you begin seeing them through the lens of grace.
• 46:20
  Michelle Moore: Yes.
• 46:21
  Daniel Moore: And honestly, we all need that grace because none of us are easy to live with 100% of the time.
• 46:27
  Michelle Moore: Amen.
• 46:27
  Daniel Moore: Not even the spouse who alphabetizes the pantry and thinks that's that somehow makes them as spiritually superior.
• 46:34
  Daniel Moore: But a marriage becomes healthier when couples stop viewing each other through frustration and start viewing each other through redemption.
• 46:42
  Daniel Moore: And so this is another important one is to make sure that we guard our minds because we can actually talk ourselves out of being happily married.
• 46:52
  Daniel Moore: That's super simple to do.
• 46:54
  Daniel Moore: All Satan has to do is start throwing in a whole bunch of negative things into your mind about your spouse.
• 46:59
  Daniel Moore: And then if your spouse starts doing some things you don't appreciate, that just adds to the fire, fuel to the fire.
• 47:06
  Daniel Moore: And it's real easy just to let your mind run wild and you have to start having all these thoughts and all these things going on.
• 47:12
  Daniel Moore: And you can literally talk yourself into believing baloney.
• 47:15
  Daniel Moore: I mean, that's just about the way it goes.
• 47:17
  Daniel Moore: So we've got to make sure that we keep that part of the armor on, that helmet of salvation, to protect our minds and make sure that Satan can't get in there and create a battlefield out of that.
• 47:28
  Daniel Moore: So what's the next one there?
• 47:30
  Michelle Moore: I'm so excited on this one.
• 47:32
  Michelle Moore: The sword of the spirit, the word of God.
• 47:36
  Michelle Moore: This is the only offensive weapon in the armor.
• 47:41
  Michelle Moore: And in marriage, God's word becomes our guide, our correction, our encouragement, and our anchor.
• 47:48
  Michelle Moore: When conflict rises, scripture gives perspective.
• 47:52
  Michelle Moore: When emotions flare, truth steadies us.
• 47:56
  Michelle Moore: When discouragement creeps in, God's promises strengthen us.
• 48:01
  Michelle Moore: James 1 19 reminds us to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.
• 48:09
  Michelle Moore: Imagine how many arguments would shrink if couples actually pause long enough to practice that verse before responding emotionally.
• 48:18
  Michelle Moore: And let's be honest, sometimes our first instinct is to conflict is not exactly spirit-filled wisdom.
• 48:25
  Michelle Moore: Sometimes it's pulling out our mental collection of helpful reminders from the past three years.
• 48:32
  Michelle Moore: That's funny.
• 48:33
  Michelle Moore: But scripture calls us higher.
• 48:36
  Michelle Moore: Instead of weaponizing words, we learn to speak life.
• 48:40
  Michelle Moore: And instead of attacking character, we pursue with understanding.
• 48:45
  Michelle Moore: Instead of feeding conflict, we invite truth into it.
• 48:49
  Michelle Moore: A couple that praise scripture together becomes spiritually dangerous to the enemy.
• 48:56
  Michelle Moore: So when God's word fills a marriage, the enemy's lies lose their power.
• 49:02
  Daniel Moore: Yeah, this is a big one.
• 49:04
  Daniel Moore: Uh this probably is the foundation of every piece of armor that we could put on.
• 49:09
  Daniel Moore: Because every piece of armor that we wear in our marriage is going to be fundamentally, foundationally strong because we read the word.
• 49:19
  Daniel Moore: We know that the word is the living, breathing word of God, our Creator.
• 49:24
  Daniel Moore: And there's no better place to go to than back to His Word when we start having questions in our mind, when we start having conflicts between each other, when we start having big disagreements, or uh we start feeling like that we're just not good enough.
• 49:40
  Daniel Moore: Uh we feel like that our spouse doesn't love us anymore.
• 49:43
  Daniel Moore: You know, there's so many scenarios that we can go through as a couple and just go on and on and on and on and on, but the word has answers for all of that.
• 49:51
  Daniel Moore: God has ways, he fills all of those voids.
• 49:55
  Daniel Moore: And the only way that we can actually reap the benefits of that is to grab the Bible, open it, and start digging in.
• 50:02
  Daniel Moore: And just like we mentioned earlier, when Satan was tempting Jesus, what did Jesus use?
• 50:08
  Daniel Moore: He he did have the rest of the armor there.
• 50:11
  Daniel Moore: He could use any of it, all of it was there.
• 50:14
  Daniel Moore: But the what he did was he spoke scripture and he fought the devil's lies with truth.
• 50:20
  Daniel Moore: And so I think that that's just awesome that we have that sword that we can go into to battle with against the enemy.
• 50:29
  Daniel Moore: So that's all the parts of the armor of God, but there is an extra one that we want to throw in.
• 50:35
  Michelle Moore: The secret sauce.
• 50:37
  Daniel Moore: The secret sauce.
• 50:38
  Daniel Moore: And what is that?
• 50:39
  Michelle Moore: That is prayer.
• 50:41
  Daniel Moore: Yes.
• 50:42
  Daniel Moore: Paul finishes Ephesians 6 by talking about prayer.
• 50:46
  Daniel Moore: And you know, probably if you think about it, prayer is what holds all the armor together.
• 50:51
  Daniel Moore: Prayer changes atmospheres, it softens hearts, it invites God directly into the middle of the marriage.
• 50:56
  Daniel Moore: And it's hard to stay bitter towards someone that you consistently pray for.
• 51:00
  Daniel Moore: We've mentioned that several times in our episodes.
• 51:03
  Daniel Moore: It's not impossible, we're human, but it's definitely harder.
• 51:08
  Daniel Moore: Prayer reminds couples we are on the same team.
• 51:10
  Daniel Moore: And prayer together doesn't have to sound ultra spiritual or polished.
• 51:14
  Daniel Moore: Sometimes it may just be, Lord, we're both frustrated, help us communicate better.
• 51:18
  Daniel Moore: It may just be give us wisdom.
• 51:20
  Daniel Moore: It could be help us love each other well today.
• 51:23
  Daniel Moore: God honors sincerity more than performance.
• 51:26
  Daniel Moore: So one of the strongest habits that any married couple can build is praying together regularly, even if it feels awkward at first, because prayer recreates spiritual intimacy that emotional connection alone cannot fully sustain.
• 51:42
  Daniel Moore: So I think that's just an awesome way to wrap up the armor of God.
• 51:47
  Daniel Moore: Uh, it brings it all back home to getting on our knees and and as they say, get on your knees and fight like a man, get on your knees and fight like a woman.
• 51:56
  Daniel Moore: Uh, when we're on our knees, we are touching the hand of God.
• 52:00
  Michelle Moore: Yeah.
• 52:01
  Daniel Moore: And we should always make sure that we remember that regardless what's coming up against us in our marriages and our daily lives, we've always got prayer there as part of our warfare.
• 52:12
  Daniel Moore: So, is there anything you want to add to this week's episode?
• 52:14
  Michelle Moore: Oh, it's so good.
• 52:15
  Daniel Moore: Yeah, this was a good way.
• 52:17
  Daniel Moore: This probably, as I said last week, this is probably my favorite chapter in this book.
• 52:22
  Daniel Moore: I love the, you know, the whole book is really good.
• 52:24
  Daniel Moore: There's a lot of really good stuff in there.
• 52:25
  Daniel Moore: But this is one of my favorite ones because spiritual warfare is so common.
• 52:29
  Daniel Moore: And it's something that, as we've talked about, it's easily overlooked.
• 52:33
  Daniel Moore: And we want to blame each other.
• 52:35
  Daniel Moore: You know, I can blame you all day long for what's going on, but there's other things behind stuff that's happening sometimes.
• 52:41
  Daniel Moore: And if we don't open our eyes up to that, it just continues to be a big blowing-up battle between the two of us.
• 52:48
  Daniel Moore: And if we don't come in and address the root of where that's coming from, if that's Satan, then we're going to continue fighting like that.
• 52:58
  Daniel Moore: So, you know, couples who pray together stop seeing each other as the problem and start seeing God as the source of strength.
• 53:05
  Daniel Moore: At the end of the day, the armor of God isn't just for pastors, missionaries, or dramatic spiritual moments.
• 53:10
  Daniel Moore: It's for ordinary married couples trying to honor God in everyday life.
• 53:14
  Daniel Moore: It's for husbands and wives navigating stress, schedules, parenting, finances, communication struggles, exhaustion, and growth.
• 53:21
  Daniel Moore: The armor matters because the battle is real, but so is God's power.
• 53:27
  Daniel Moore: So make sure that you put on the armor daily, speak truth, guard your heart, choose peace, walk by faith, protect your mind, fill your marriage with God's word, and pray constantly.
• 53:39
  Daniel Moore: And make sure you laugh often too.
• 53:42
  Daniel Moore: That's very important.
• 53:44
  Daniel Moore: Because sometimes surviving spiritual warfare in marriage also involves realizing the argument about thermostat settings probably isn't worth losing emotional intimacy over.
• 53:54
  Daniel Moore: The healthiest marriages are not the ones without battles, they're the ones that keep fighting side by side.
• 54:01
  Daniel Moore: So suit up, stand firm, give grace generously, and remember this powerful truth.
• 54:06
  Daniel Moore: You're not fighting against each other.
• 54:08
  Daniel Moore: You're what?
• 54:10
  Daniel Moore: Fighting for each other.
• 54:12
  Daniel Moore: Fighting for each other.
• 54:13
  Michelle Moore: That's right.
• 54:14
  Daniel Moore: Never forget that.
• 54:32
  Daniel Moore: As we close out this episode, here's the truth we want every married couple to hold on to.
• 54:37
  Daniel Moore: Your marriage was never meant to survive on feelings alone.
• 54:40
  Daniel Moore: It was meant to be strengthened by God daily.
• 54:42
  Daniel Moore: The enemy would love nothing more than for husbands and wives to slowly drift apart through pride, distraction, exhaustion, miscommunication, and spiritual neglect.
• 54:51
  Daniel Moore: But God has already given us everything we need to stand firm.
• 54:54
  Daniel Moore: The armor of God isn't just theology for Sunday mornings, it's practical protection for everyday marriage battles.
• 55:02
  Daniel Moore: The belt of truth reminds us to communicate honestly.
• 55:04
  Daniel Moore: The breastplate of righteousness guards our hearts from bitterness and selfishness.
• 55:08
  Daniel Moore: The shoes of peace teach us to pursue reconciliation rather than win arguments.
• 55:13
  Daniel Moore: The shield of faith helps us reject fear and trust God in difficult seasons.
• 55:18
  Daniel Moore: The helmet of salvation renews our thinking when lies creep in.
• 55:21
  Daniel Moore: And the sword of the spirit gives us truth to fight back when emotions try to take control.
• 55:27
  Daniel Moore: And through all of it, prayer keeps us connected to the one who holds our marriage together in the first place.
• 55:33
  Daniel Moore: So this week, don't just listen to this episode, apply it.
• 55:37
  Daniel Moore: Pray together, even if it feels awkward at first, speak truth with gentleness, put the phones down for a while and reconnect intentionally, apologize quicker, forgive faster, and stop keeping score.
• 55:50
  Daniel Moore: And maybe just maybe decide that the dishwasher, thermostat, and toothpaste cap are not worthy of sacrificing emotional intimacy over.
• 55:58
  Daniel Moore: Remember, healthy marriages are not built by couples who never struggle, they're built by couples who keep showing up, keep extending grace, and keep putting on the armor of God together day after day.
• 56:10
  Daniel Moore: When a husband and wife stand united in Christ, fully surrender to God and committed to fighting for each other instead of against each other, the enemy loses ground every single time.
• 56:21
  Daniel Moore: So suit up, stand firm, love deeply, and remember this powerful truth.
• 56:27
  Daniel Moore: The strongest marriages aren't the ones without battles.
• 56:30
  Daniel Moore: They're the ones where both people refuse to stop fighting side by side.
• 56:36
  Daniel Moore: Well, that's gonna do it for this week's episode, and that wraps up our episode on spiritual warfare in marriage.
• 56:42
  Daniel Moore: Next week we're gonna start into episode 11 as we continue our series on marriage as a mission.
• 56:48
  Daniel Moore: Don't forget you can pick up that book anywhere you buy your books on Amazon, Walmart, Barnes Noble, Books a Million.
• 56:54
  Daniel Moore: It's available all over the place.
• 56:55
  Daniel Moore: There's a six-session study guide that goes with it as well, and you still have time to purchase that and finish out this series with us as we continue this next week here on Marriage Life and More.
• 57:06
  Daniel Moore: Well, that's all for this week.
• 57:08
  Daniel Moore: We pray that your marriage is stronger and your walk with God is closer after this episode.
• 57:11
  Daniel Moore: This episode was recorded in the upper room at our Connecting the Gap Studios.
• 57:15
  Daniel Moore: This is an extension of Connecting the Gap Ministries.
• 57:17
  Daniel Moore: We pray that you have a blessed week.