KEYS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION IN MARRIAGE By: Pastor Faith Oyedepo

What is Communication? Communication can be defined as the exchange of conversation, ideas and feelings between two or more people. Communication is meant to be two-sided and stimulating. In marriage, it is meant to be a medium of sharing thoughts, feelings, ideas, etc, between a man and his wife, thereby keeping your relationship going.
To be able to keep a free flow of communication with your spouse and other members of your household, you must first of all develop a good flow of communication with God, your Creator. The Word of God says: For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God (Hebrews 3:4). This Scripture gave us a clear picture that the true Builder of a successful marriage is God. Therefore, you must be able to communicate effectively with the builder of all things, so you can have all it takes to build a free flow communication line between you and your spouse, and others around you.
It is very important for you to know that God is the ultimate Builder of families and destinies. That is the reason most couples lack effective communication in their marriage. It will do you good, when you allow the communication line between you and God to be open all the time. Learn to rub minds with God; as you do so, His great mind will rub off on your little mind and make it sharper in effective communication with others.

How Do I Communicate Effectively with God? The following are ways through which you can communicate effectively with God:
A life of Prayer: A life of prayer is one of the major ways of communicating with God. Prayer is simply the art of communing with God. Prayer involves you talking to God, and God talking to you. It is a two-way purposeful conversation with God. The Word of God says: Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God (Philippians 4:6). This clearly shows that through the medium of prayer, your request can be made known to God, and you can expect answers from Him.
For you to be able to communicate with God effectively in prayer, you need to first of all become His child. Salvation is the only key to effective communication with God otherwise, your prayer will be noise to God. Without a free flow of communication with God, every other communication will not be a smooth one. The Word of God says: Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers (Ephesians 4:29).
A life of Thanksgiving, Praise and Worship: If you are addicted to a life of thanksgiving, praise and worship to God, it will definitely reflect in your everyday life with your spouse and family members. The Word of God says: …Teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord (Colossians 3:16).
To be thankful is to be praiseful, to be praiseful is to be joyful, to be joyful is to be ‘God-full.’ God’s Word says: …O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel (Psalm 22:3). Just as fish cannot survive outside water, God cannot survive outside praise. Accusations, murmuring and complaining are signs of ingratitude to God, and can lead to destruction (1 Corinthians 10:10).
Therefore, in all situations, remember that God is always right! He is always working in your favour and for your good. A grateful attitude is the secret!
As earlier mentioned, you need to surrender your life to Christ, in order to effectively communicate with God, which is the foundation for effective communication in marriage. If you are set for this new birth experience, you can say this prayer of faith:

Dear Lord, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me of my sins.  Cleanse me with Your precious Blood. Deliver me from sin and Satan, to serve the Living God. I accept You as my Lord and Saviour.  Now I know I am born again!
Congratulations! Till I come your way again next week, call or write, and share your testimonies with me through: contact@faithoyedepo.org, counselling@faithoyedepo.org OR 07026385437, 08141320204
For more insight, these books authored by me are available at the Dominion Bookstores in all the Living Faith Churches and other leading Christian bookstores: