My sister sent me this as an email forward: I contacted the speaker/writer Doug Apple who gave me the okay to post this message.

My overwhelming thought as I read through this message was "we need to teach this to our sons" ... and may it impress our daughters also, in their choice of earthly partners, development of biblical womanly traits and their responsibility to train their own future children. Then also, our Redeemer may require us beforehand so let us hasten to learn and to tell ....

Radio Script for April 22, 2009

“She is My Bride…For a While”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Hey men.  Is there a special woman in your life?

Could be your wife, or fiancé, or even a steady girlfriend.

If you have a special woman in your life, then I want you to picture this.

Picture yourself way off in the future, after your life here is done, standing before God.

That’s what Romans 14 says, that “we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.”  Verse 12 says, “…each of us will give an account of himself to God.”

So there you are, standing before God, and one thing you will have to account for is this woman. 

See, she has been entrusted to you.  It’s like an investment God has given you, and one day there will be an accounting.

So you’re standing before God, and now picture Him asking about all sorts of things in your life. 

And then He asks about her.

You turn, and there she is, walking up behind you.

And now listen to this very closely.  Picture yourself presenting this woman to the Lord. 

There He is, in all His majesty and splendor, His purity and holiness.

And you are presenting this woman to Him. 

Now let me ask you, what does she look like – based on your effect on her life?

Now let me tell you what she should look like. 

Ephesians 5 says that husbands should love their wives just as Christ loved the church. 

And look what Christ did.  It says He gave Himself up for her, to cleanse her and make her holy, to wash away all stains and blemishes.

And why?  So that He could “present her to Himself as a radiant church…”

And this is how husbands should love their wives.

Now think about this.  Yes, my wife is my bride – but only for a while, only during our short life here on earth.

But for all eternity she belongs to the Lord. 

I see it like this.  God has entrusted my wife to me as an investment.  And one day I will give an accounting. 

I don’t know exactly how it will go down, but here’s how I picture it.

I will be standing there before God, and he will ask about my wife.  She will step up behind me, and I will take her hand.  Then I will present her to the Lord.

And the question is, what will I be presenting?  A defeated woman?  A broken woman?  A worldly woman?  A bitter woman?  A sinful woman?

Or will I present Him with a holy woman, a Godly woman, a woman without stain or blemish?  Will I present Him with a radiant woman?

See, Christ gave Himself up for the church to make her holy and to present her to Himself as a radiant church.

And I am to love my wife that way.  So what should my big picture goal be for my wife?  That on that day I will be able to present her to the Lord as a holy and radiant woman of God!

And I am to give myself up for her to bring about that goal.

So when it comes to this special woman in my life, this is my goal.  This is what my eyes are fixed on. 

They are fixed on that day, when I will stand before the Lord, and He asks about her. 

And when she steps up there, I want to be able to take her by the hand and say, “My Lord, here she is!  Lord, I led her to be as close to You as I could.  I set the example in my own life.  I encouraged her in every way I knew how.  I loved her like You loved the church.  I took her hand and walked with her toward holiness.  I did not stain her or blemish her.  I did not hurt her or damage her.  I did not lead her down a path of worldliness.  I put up no obstacles between You and her.  And now, my Lord, here is the woman You entrusted me with.  I present her to You…a radiant woman of God!”

Men, get that picture in your mind.  Picture the day when you will present this woman to the Lord.  And do all you can while you can so that one day you can present her to the Lord – a holy, radiant woman of God!


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2009 The Arrow’s Tip 
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-…-