Tough Love in Christian Marriage

I'm sure you know that God loves and forgives you unconditionally. But did you know that He expects you to extend that same love and forgiveness to your spouse unconditionally? Of course I knew that, you say. But do you really? Listen God loves us and forgives us daily when we disobey Him, when we don't trust Him, when we don't spend time with Him, and when we don't listen to Him. Can you love your spouse when they don't behave in the manner you desire? I mean really love them without getting an attitude. Can you demonstrate love when you feel they're not listening to you? Can you walk in love when they don't spend time with you? Can you love when trust has been broken? Well, you can't do it in and of your own abilities. You can only accomplish this through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will enable you to demonstrate love to your mate even when their reactions to you are not what you desire. Oh, trust me; we know it's not easy! That's why we call it "tough love" because this is the toughest part of being married. Why is it so tough? It's so tough because it requires you to walk in the Spirit and deny your flesh. Not allowing your fleshly feelings to control you is an enormous task that requires much practice. But practice it you must, because God expects you to love and forgive just as he does and did. Listen, forget about what your spouse is or is not doing. You can't play the blame game anymore. When you come to the end of your days on this earth and stand before God; you will only have to give an account for your behavior, not your spouse. God will not ask you how your spouse responded to you. He will only ask you what you did in response to His word. Did you demonstrate the love of God?