After two days hiking Pikes Peak with a friend I was exhausted. So when my husband picked us up at the end of the trail I grabbed the nearest book in the car and started reading as he drove us home. The book was entitled The First 90 Days by Michael D. Watkins. Not something I normally would pick up.
On the first page the author states, “The actions you take during the first few months in a new role will largely determine whether you succeed or fail.” Did that ever catch my attention! Especially as Jim was just about to start a new job!
So I prayed, “Lord, you’ve created me to be Jim’s helper. How can I help him during these first 90 days on his new job? Especially as I’ll be in a different state for the first third of them! Would you please give me an idea?”
Did he ever!
One of the girls in my Bible study is getting married soon and asked if we could get together to talk about praying for your husband. If you know me, you know this is one of my favorite things to do – both praying for Jim and sharing with others the incredible blessing of doing this!
For the past twenty years I’ve made it a point wherever we live to find someone who will meet with me to pray for an hour each week for our husbands. I can’t even begin to tell you the huge difference this has made in our marriage as well as in my life! So even though I’m not much for schedules or doing the same thing repeatedly, this is one of the top priorities of things I do. Out here in Colorado, one prayer partner and I got waterproof Bibles so we can still walk and pray even if it’s snowing or raining!
Over the years have I ever collected a bunch of resources that help me pray for Jim. So I arrived at my friend’s house with a bunch of materials. What a wonderful time we shared not just talking about praying for your husband, but also praying together for my husband and her husband to be!
At the end of the time she showed me a book she’d just bought that was recommended to her called Praying for Your Husband from Head to Toe by Sharon Jaynes. When I saw it included a month’s worth of daily scriptures to guide you in praying for your husband I was so excited!!! This was the Lord’s answer to my prayer for something I could do to “help” Jim as he transitions!!! You better believe the moment I left her I went right to Amazon.com and bought a copy!
So Jim just started his new job yesterday and I just got back from my second day walking and praying through this. Oh friends, I can’t even begin to tell you what a treasure it is!!! It’s so deep and rich and extensive! I think the guy who wrote The First 90 Days should’ve included this in his book!!! :0)
Here’s what I prayed through this morning:
Now I’ve only just started so I’ve no idea what kind of impact it may have on Jim, but it is blessing the socks off me! Not only am I getting to pray for my husband, but it is providing some of the sweetest time with the Lord as I walk and pray through this each morning. It’s so rich and so unbelievably applicable to his transition, I think I very well may pray through this book three times – which perfectly covers his first 90 days! ;0)
Oh how I love it when I ask the Lord for an idea and He so abundantly delivers!
Just thought I’d share this new treasure with you! ;0)
The Heart of Discipling Women 
WHOA! Thank you for this, Deb! I am definitely getting a copy ASAP! 🙂
So how is your 30 days going? Are you still praying for Jim? The last few ladies I asked to meet to pray with me told me they do not pray with others. Ouch. It is indeed difficult to find others to pray with. This book sounds amazing.
Hi Jodi! It’s going great! So sorry for the delay in responding! We just moved cross country this past week and it has been crazy! But I’ve really been enjoying sweet time with Jesus praying for my husband :0) The only thing – I noticed on the third day there’s not a lot of thanks in the book, so that’s one thing I’m having to be intentional to add. But put that in and it certainly is providing a wonderful format keeping me on track and definitely spurring me on to pray more than I would’ve otherwise. I’m so sorry you’re finding it hard to find a prayer partner. It really does highlight what a gift it is whenever the Lord provides someone who will faithfully meet with you to pray. Sometimes it takes me a while to find someone and as I wait, that’s always a big thing I keep asking Him for! Since we just moved I’m now in the same situation as you looking for who next He will provide. Know I’ll be praying for you even as I pray asking Him to provide someone for me! May we both keep persevering in asking! Sometimes it takes me a couple months and a lot of asking and things not working out, but I’ve always found it’s been so worth it to persevere in asking both the Lord and others! And some of my dear prayer partners had never prayed aloud with anyone before we started praying together – they were just desperate enough to give it a try… and then found they loved doing this! ;0) So when I look for a prayer partner, I’m not looking for someone who is a spiritual giant who has walked with Jesus for years. The three things I look for are 1) faithfulness (because without that it won’t last long!) 2) confidentiality and 3) desperation (they see their need for the Lord either personally or for what’s going on in their husband’s life or their marriage and are willing to make praying together weekly a priority as a result). So that’s what I’m praying for both of us! And I’m so looking forward to seeing how He answers our prayers!!! ;0)