Godly Success In Marriage

Godly Success in Marriage - Part 8

Action 4: Spend Time with Each Other

When couples are dating, many of them want to reserve 6:00 pm until 2:00 am everyday to be together. And anything that threatens that time is seen as an inconvenience. If you’ve dated, you know what I am talking about. You went to a movie by yourselves. You are together, talked together…

When you get married, it is different. Much of your time is spent doing all the things you have to do to keep a family going. You can become like two old mules yoked together. “Ah, there you are, Sally. Ready to start pulling? Better get going – we got about fifty years of this ahead of us.”

The danger is that after a few job changes, illnesses, kids, operations… you become two Marines back to back. “It’s your turn to take the kids.” You just get tough, like old partners, who lean on each other. In one sense, that’s OK. I always tell young couples, “Don’t think marriage is a continual fount of effervescence and joy. A huge part of marriage is just being there for one another no matter how you feel.”

But marriage is more than that. Marriage is also meant to include delight and intimacy and joy. Those aspects of our relationship are built when we spend time together. So every Wednesday night, my wife and I go out. And when I say “go out”, I don’t mean we run down to Wendy’s. I mean I vacuum the car, brush my teeth, take her out, sit across from her and spend time together. Make it a priority, prepare for it, and treat it as an opportunity and a challenge. Guess what? Once you build the habit, it becomes fun and you’ll never want to do without it. Your children will boast about your tenderness into the next generation.

posted by Lighthouse @ 11:52 PM