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How important is porch time to you?
Do you value it?
Do you intentionally schedule it?
When I mention porch time, what emotions are stirred?
Can you envision a certain place?

For me, porch time is essential to my health. John and I can tell when we have missed it for a few days. For us, it is a place of connection, not only to each other but to nature. To reconnect with the Creator of nature. We enjoy the birds that frequent our home, the clouds, the wind, the flowers in their season. Most often, porch time is during the sunlight, but sometimes it is enjoyed in the evening, watching the moon move across the night sky or the stars holding their assigned places in the night sky. In the warmer seasons, we often sit under an umbrella or a shade tree. In the cooler months, our porch time is often warmed by a small fire in a fire pit. Most often it involves a comforting drink and thoughtful conversation. Our conversations revolve around our immediate concerns, family, prayer needs. We share our hearts with each other, our daily lives, our dreams, and our plans to achieve God's best for us. We have many porch time places, but even if we find ourselves in a place without one of our familiar porches, we search for a porch time experience.

As you read these thoughts, let me ask you, is the thought of porch time with your lover (husband or wife) something you look forward to? If not, are you willing to ask yourself why not? Would you be willing to spend some time contemplating and exploring your feelings? Would you be so brave as to share these thoughts with your lover? I meet and talk to women and some would say that alone time seems to lead to a desire for sexual intimacy, but I'd rather just talk. Husbands often interpret alone time as an invitation to sexual intimacy.  I would say both are amazing gifts to each other, meaningful conversation and sexual intimacy. One of the keys to a great marriage is not good communication but honest, intimate, and loving communication.

Porch time is vital to our relationship, but it may look different for you. However, I do know that time with your lover is a very important ingredient to a great marriage. I invite you to talk about and create "porch time".

Lord, as we reflect on the importance of time together, let us remember the way You created us as husband and wife. Let us reflect on the Garden of Eden and the way Adam and Eve lived daily together with You in the beauty of Your creation. Let us seek to connect in ways that draw us closer together as husband and wife and closer to You.

LOVER: husband and wife in a committed and covenant marriage