Marriage is Important to Everyone

Despite the impression you may currently be getting from our culture, marriage is vital to the success of our society. The preservation of the institution of marriage benefits everyone. After all, a marriage between a man and a woman is based on a lifelong commitment that, in principle, challenges selfishness. How would you like to come face-to-face with your own selfishness? Then get married! Would you like to overcome that selfishness? Then surrender to God's help within that marriage! A healthy and God-centered marriage is the unique human relationship that effectively prepares us for how to live in other aspects of community. This is what makes marriage necessary for any culture that wants to thrive. It's the ordering relationship in society.

Obviously, not all people are called to be married (Jesus and Paul are certainly great examples). However, communities and cultures that support healthy marriages will improve statistically in far too many categories to name here. This is a statistical and historical reality. As noted Biblical scholar John Stott has pointed out, marriage is a relationship with five facets:

1. It is between a man and a woman.
2. It is monogamous. Despite accounts of polygamy in some Old Testament situations, monogamy was always God's purpose from the beginning. (Gen. 2:24)
3. When a man leaves his parents to marry, he must "cleave" to his wife, sticking to her like glue. He must be committed to her.
4. Before the "cleaving" of marriage, there should be the "leaving" of parents, and the "leaving" is a public social occasion. Family, friends, and society have a right to know what is happening.
5. The two will become one flesh. Sexual union is so much a constitutive element of marriage that willful nonconsummation is in many societies a ground for its annulment.

Marriage is an incredible gift from God, totally designed for that married couple to be utterly dependent on Him. There is no other human relationship like it.

Thanks for all that you do to support healthy marriages in our community!

Love One Another

Below are some of our favorite "love one another" passages from Scripture. Applying these would undoubtedly help any relationship. Try them!

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. (John 5:12)

Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash another's feet. (John 13:14)

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. (John 13:34-35)

Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. (Romans 12:10)

Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. (Romans 15:7)

You were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. (Galatians 5:13)

Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. (Ephesians 4:2)

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32)

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. (I Thessalonians 5:11)

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit; but in humility regard one another as more important than himself. (Philippians 2:3)

Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. (I Peter 4:8-9)

Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us. (I John 4:11-12)

Therefore confess your sins to one another and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. (James 5:16)

Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers and sisters, be compassionate and humble. (I Peter 3:8)

Remember, these are God's commands to us....not suggestions! He gives these to us so that we can have more successful relationships.

Ten Great Cheap Dates

Park Date:

Pack up a healthy picnic, grab a soft blanket, and set out for your favorite area park--YOUR park. Bring extra bread for the ducks.

The Adventure Sport Date:

Mountain biking, rollerskating, Ice skating, rock climbing (you can even do that indoors, you know), rowing in the park, whatever….learn to work together as a team. Or one of you may end up playing ER nurse to the other. Even better.

The Disco Flashback Date:

Escape from 2009 for the night, go back in time, and take your date disco-bowling. Bust out the old polyester.

The Sports Night Date:

Bring your date to an area sports bar. Make sure it’s on the night of a great game—you may only get one chance to do this one.

Art Gallery or Museum Date:

Not as boring as it sounds. C’mon, broaden your horizons.

The Drive-in Movie Date:

Change things up and take your date to a drive-in movie theater. Not recommended for nights below 40F. Also defintiely not recommended for nights above 80F.

Romantic Drive and View Date:

Take a romantic drive to the most beautiful view in your city. For Houstonians, that would be….

The Kiss-the-Chef Date:

Heat things up while you cook your own entrees. And make sure you're whippin' up your best dish--definitely not the time to be experimenting.

The Karaoke Date:

Try this one at your own risk. Music of certain 70’s cheeseball crooners are strictly off limits. Caution: karaoke has ended many a relationship. Know what you're getting into.

Design-Your-Own Date:

Give some thought to a very special and personal date. Create your date around your loved one’s favorite interests. You can still go cheap—because on this one, it truly is the thought that counts! BIG potential brownie points.

Stressor Convergence

Quite often, it seems, life can throw us a truckload of stressors all at once. Those difficult situations can be one major tragedy after another....or they can be a bombardment of small annoyances. Sometimes the result can be the same as far as our sanity is concerned. Even a temporarily troubled life inundated with constant pressures can be overwhelming....as well as potentially lethal for marriages and family relationships.

So what to do when you are in a state of stressor convergence? I suggest three simple and universal steps:

1. Pray, pray, pray. If you're already a person of prayer, pray three times as often as usual! God is the source of all wisdom and resources. Why would you not look to Him for help?

2. Lean heavily on family and friends. God has given us these support systems for a reason. Learn to open up to those that love you--so they can help and pray for you, too. Family and friends should be counted on for encouragement and to help you maintain some sense of normalcy through tough times. Remember, it's okay to be in need some times in your life.

3. Do the best you can. In other words, cut yourself some slack. Nobody skates through life perfectly--and there are often so many things that can come your way that are beyond your control. Only one man in history lived a perfect life. For the rest of us, the best you can do is the best you can do. Don't kick yourself about not being able to do more than that. After all, it's impossible to do more than your best.

Tough times don't last forever. Always remember that. And also be reminded when things are good for you and your family, they are often rough for someone else. If you're enjoying some smooth sailing, reach out and help someone who is navigating harsh waters. They will never forget your kindness.