My Thirteenth Chapter
There are many names that we could call our spouses like sweetheart, honey, babe etc. But what about calling them your thirteenth chapter? That may sound strange but when I read about a man named Count Helmuth James von Moltke who called his wife his thirteenth chapter it touched my heart. He was referring to 1 Corinthians 13 which is often called the love chapter.
He believed that God had commissioned him for specific purposes in life and one of them was to be a husband. In all of his life’s pursuits he was passionately devoted to faithful service. His devotion to each of his outside interests provided character building that also enhanced his marriage.
In a letter to his wife he referred to her as “my thirteenth chapter of the First Epistle to the Corinthians….It is only in our union – you and I – that we form a complete human being.” As I thought about this throughout the day I kept thinking to myself that God has commissioned us to live out the meaning of that chapter in our relationships with each other.
How would that look? A simple way to know is by inserting your name in that passage in place of the word love.
__________ is patient, ________is kind. ____________does not envy, _________ does not boast, ___________ is not proud. ________is not rude, ________is not self-seeking, __________ is not easily angered, ___________ keeps no record of wrongs. ___________does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ______________always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. ___________ never fails.
That is a very big commission by God to pursue, but remember, God wouldn’t have given us the job if it couldn’t be accomplished through Him. Our spouses and other relationships are no surprise to Him and He knows just how each one of them will refine us in each area listed in that passage.
As we develop each of those characteristics we become closer to becoming the people of God that He created us to be. A chapter is defined as a period of time in a person’s life. So in calling our spouse our thirteenth chapter, we are really saying that for this time in our life, God specifically chose them to be our partners and helpmates in learning the ways of God’s love.
Isn’t that beautiful! I’m so grateful to have Tracy as my thirteen chapter.
My Prayer
Father, thank you for softening my heart and showing me areas that I need to change. What a difference it makes when I look at circumstances through Your perspective. Guide me so that I can develop the characteristics that will make me more like You. Let this chapter in my life draw me closer to You and help me to be grateful for those who are in it. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Where does my help come from?
1 Corinthians 13: 4-8
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.