Marriage

Marriage

My Question for God

What are some keys to a happy, strong marriage?

A Moment with God

[Joshua said,] “Choose today whom you will serve. . . . But as for me and my family, we will serve the LORD.”

Joshua 24:15

Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction?

Amos 3:3

A united purpose to serve the Lord is one key to a strong marriage. If you want to take a walk with someone, you must decide together on the direction. If you want to walk through life with your spouse, you must decide together which direction you want to go—toward an eternal destination or away. This is the key to experiencing daily divine moments together.

Rejoice in the wife of your youth. She is a loving deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts satisfy you always. May you always be captivated by her love.

Proverbs 5:18-19

Physical faithfulness to your spouse is another necessary key to a strong and happy marriage. Without faithfulness there is no real trust or intimacy.

[Jesus said,] “Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.”

Matthew 19:4-6

Commitment to staying together no matter what is essential for a strong and lasting relationship. If you leave open the option of splitting up someday, chances are you will. If you don’t see breaking up as an option, you will remain committed to making your marriage work. This commitment joins you together in pursuing and accomplishing shared, lifelong goals.

We should help others do what is right and build them up in the Lord.

Romans 15:1-2

Self-sacrifice is essential to a strong marriage. This means putting your spouse’s needs and interests first. Who wouldn’t want to be in a relationship where you are always meeting your spouse’s needs before attending to your own?

May God . . . help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God.

Romans 15:5-6

Learn to understand each other’s differences and celebrate them. This fosters respect for each other and turns differences that would normally annoy or distract you into strengths that interest and help you.

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Ephesians 5:21

Mutual submission in serving each other is a key to a strong marriage because it involves accountability, vulnerability, and confession.

Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other.

James 5:16

Praying with and for each other helps to bond you together in marriage.

Our letters have been straightforward, and there is nothing written between the lines and nothing you can’t understand. I hope someday you will fully understand us, even if you don’t understand us now.

2 Corinthians 1:13-14

Good communication is a necessity. Since mind reading is possible only for God, talk to your spouse, and keep the lines of communication open, even when a conversation is awkward or hard. Instead of making each other guess, be honest. This will build trust and comfort into your relationship.

She brings [her husband] good, not harm, all the days of her life.

Proverbs 31:12

Regular affirmation will enhance each other’s value and build a strong marriage. Everyone needs to feel valued. Find ways to affirm your spouse each day, and you will build strength and joy in your marriage.

The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs.

1 Corinthians 7:3

A healthy sex life is important for a strong and happy marriage because it allows you to express intimacy and vulnerability in a way different from any other relationship. It is a way you can share special closeness that demonstrates your complete openness to one another. This is what sets marriage apart as a relationship like no other and makes it a symbol of our relationship with God.

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.

1 Corinthians 13:4-5

Expressing unconditional love means doing the right thing even when your spouse does something that hurts you. Consistently demonstrating unconditional love is perhaps the hardest thing to do in a marriage, but it is the most effective way to have a great relationship and to win over the heart of even the most stubborn spouse.

Divine Promise

As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.”

Ephesians 5:31