God designed marriage. In His plan, marriage is a lifetime union between husband and wife, a union that completes each one of them. They complement each other and bring to the relationship exactly what the other needs1.
Couples need to look at each other from the perspective of God’s eyes.
Rather than concentrating on the weaknesses of their spouses, they should rather concentrate on the strengths of their mates. The common mistake that couples commit is that they consider their mates as the source of their joy, happiness, peace etc… 1 am reminded that one of the names of God is I AM.
This means that only God can provide our peace (Jehovah Shalom), our needs (Jehovah Jireh), can heal us (Jehovah Rapha). Couples can only facilitate the above, but only I AM can meet all of our needs.
The insinuation then is to say that one’s spouse cannot really meet your needs, which only God can meet. Stop then to put unnecessary pressure upon your mate and love her as your life partner.
The other point is that couples should refrain from regarding their spouses as their ‘properties’, but as God’s gift to them. Psalm 24, verse 1 says: “The earth is the Lord’s and its fullness, the world and all who dwell therein.” This means that whatever I think belongs to me, is really the Lord’s.
I am merely a caretaker of the assets that God has entrusted to my care. My wife, children, money, time, talents, gifts and so forth belongs to Elohim, the creator of heaven and earth!
It is very important that couples hold regular family prayers. Families that do this will be bonded together by the love of God, and the demon of divorce will be paralysed by such prayers. We should make our homes places that honour God. Richard Monckton Milnes once said “the Christian home is the Master’s workshop where the processes of character molding are Silently, lovingly, faithfully and successfully carried on”
Couples should have a degree of allowance that accommodates the shortcomings of each other. In fact such shortcomings should spur on to practice godly virtues of patience, forgiveness, love and kindness. Remember that marriage has got eternal consequences. Fact of the matter is that the marriage of the Church to Christ is a prototype of our physical marriage on planet earth. What place could be more conducive to rear children, than in a marriage that fears and honours Almighty God.
1 – Bruce & Stan. God is in the small stuff for your family!
Originally published in the print edition of DIVINE Magazine, Issue 01.
