Bugs can abound in the brain too--and so, in the process of writing this devo, I ended up searching through yesterday's trash to retrieve an article that's been buggin' ME ever since I read it. I found it--along with some interesting links you'll find below--so hang on! I know the title grabbed your attention--God has a sense of humor, and I do believe HE laid this devo on this busy/dizzy dame's heart to share with you!

Warning: You won't find hot, steamy sex in this story, nor will you find heavy-handed, steamy sinners either! You ARE about to find a few "hot 'n heavy" BUGS that have polluted our society and our God-given gift of marriage for a lifetime. If you're sick of it--as I am--then get out your heavenly spray bottle--let's find 'em and spray 'em DEAD--as we celebrate marriages made in heaven--not hell--and here goes!

ARE YOU A PUG BUG?

What's a PUG bug? A fighter--someone determined to turn every thought, word and deed into a "fight for the right"-- and of course, THAT means, "I'm right--you're wrong!" Harsh, unkind, cruel words fly back and forth as two once-in-love people who BEGAN on the right foot forget the common ground they share, are unwilling to talk it out, pray it out and work it out!

What to do if you're a PUG BUG? Spray it with forgiveness--HIS forgiveness that reaches far past HUMAN forgiveness. It forgives, forgets--and goes on. It puts the failures in the seas of HIS forgetfulness. It COMPLETES what's HE once bagan--and that's what a heavenly marriage is all about!

ARE YOU A TUG BUG?

So what's a TUG BUG? A taker--someone determined to pull as much as possible from the other person, to constantly take--pleasure, power, persistence--and pure selfishness! It's called control--it's called "having your own way"--it's called "hell's hoarding"--and it's not fair! Two once-in-love people who, with great joy, once gave to one another--a thoughtful heart, a listening ear, a helping hand--now GRAB from each other: "what's mine is mine--what's MINE is MINE--and the tug o' war begins....AND ends with a loser at BOTH ends!

What to do if you're a TUG BUG? Spray it with fairness--HIS "give-and-take" truths you can hold onto: "It is more blessed to give than to receive" - "For God so loved the world that He GAVE..." - when two married partners adopt that kind of unselfish attitude, the tug o' war will end. FAIRNESS that once characterized the courtship that began it all--can know a tender renewal of the love/share relationship that once was--that's what a heavenly marriage is all about!

ARE YOU A SHRUG BUG?

So what's a SHRUG BUG? A runner--someone determined to get his own way, do his own thing, and run when it doesn't work! So what if we find ourselves "no longer compatible"? So what if he (or she) is no longer the "perfect 10" we married? So what if it's too much work to keep it alive? I'll just shrug it off--and "run lover run"--into the arms of someone who IS compatible, who IS a perfect "10," who's no work at all....how me-centered and how mean!

So what to do if you're SHRUG BUG? Spray it with faithfulness--HIS faithfulness that bonds two loving partners together in "until death do us part"--a faithfulness that does not run at the first red light...it stops, evaluates the problem, works it out, prays it through, and takes off as the light turns green...with delight, determination, and divine help--that you and HE, your faithful God, are going to make it work--that's what a heavenly marriage is all about!

And now, it's time for the MUG BUG...a LOOK IN THE MIRROR.....and what do YOU see? A PUG bug, a TUG bug, a SHRUG bug? Get out that heavenly spray, wipe the mirror clean--see through HIS eyes the marriage partner you CAN be, by His grace--not faithless, faultful, fitful--but a man or woman filled with His love, peace and joy--and the ability to share it what you STARTED with and plan, by HIS grace, to complete unto the day of Jesus Christ!

Now if THAT won't BUG the BUGS--and BELZEBUB--out of the bedroom, I don't know what will!--and by the way, if your partner is a THUG Bug--an abuser--it's time to run--for help! Please do!

...and that's just a little "food for thought" from my heart to yours!

Have a HUG--and a Happy Love-Filled Valentine's Day--every day!

"Lord, You've brought the bugs to my attention--now, by Your grace, help me rid my soul, spirit and mind of every rodent in my life that would wreck my marriage. May I be the partner that YOU want me to be, In Jesus' Name, Amen."

TODAY'S FEATURED LINKS

"Starter Marriage: A New Term for Early Divorce!"--a USAToday article
"Starter Marriages: Are GenXer's Really Ready to Walk Down the Aisle?"--an ABCNews story
Book excerpt: "The Starter Marriage"

All Scriptures are taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.

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