Marriage Series: Introduction

I plan to write more posts on marriage and relationships to share my experiences and lessons learned on the marriage highway during the last 32 years. I am passionate about encouraging women struggling in difficult marriages.  I will be transparent about my journey, however, I will also preserve the privacy of our marriage.

When we got married, I was excited. I looked forward to the joys of doing life together and having children. I had high hopes for us but, as anyone who is married knows, the honeymoon does not last forever. Over the years as we adjusted to daily life together, the saying that “love is blind, but marriage is an eye-opener” soon became a reality.

Our differences became more apparent over time.  Differences in communication styles, different expectations, and baggage from our upbringing began to create stress fractures that threatened to derail our marriage. During this time, I looked for solutions to our “unexpected” problems and that search led me to embrace Jesus in a new way.

Thankfully, during my search, I found that I was not alone. Abraham and Sarah are a couple in the Bible who know a thing or two about marriage. Sometime after they relocated to Canaan, there was a famine in the land. Abraham suggested that they go down to Egypt. As they neared the border of Egypt, Abraham said to Sarah, “I know you are a beautiful woman.” When the Egyptians see you, they will say, this is his wife and they will kill me and let you live. So, he told her to lie that she was his sister. As Abraham predicted, the Egyptians were captivated by Sarah’s beauty and they took her to live in Pharaoh’s palace. (Genesis 12:10-17)

Sometimes “Love” will make you take foolish actions. While Sarah was in danger Abraham profited from his scheme. He was treated very well by Pharaoh and he accumulated sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, men and women servants. I cannot even imagine what was going through Sarah’s mind. Thankfully, God rescued Sarah by making everybody in Pharaoh’s household sick, which exposed the lie.

Like every marriage, Abraham and Sarah’s marriage had ongoing issues. Sarah was unable to conceive, but she talked Abraham into marrying her Egyptian maid, so they could have children. Read more about it here (Genesis 16:1-6).

Restore

Marriage can be joyful and fulfilling but it requires awareness and intentionality. The marriage highway is often filled with hills, valleys, twists, turns, and narrow bridges such as differences in communication, conflict resolution, parenting styles, and upbringing. What makes a marriage great is how we navigate the twists, turns and the narrow bridges on the marriage highway.

Navigating this highway in my marriage led me to a closer walk with God. I learned how to hunt for treasures in the hills and valleys which helped me grow in my faith. I gained deeper truths that are at the core of standing for my marriage.

Hope

Are you in struggling in your marriage? Many people are not willing to admit that they have struggles, or are in a difficult marriage. God can restore your marriage. You don’t have to face your challenges alone. You can trust God to help you with the gloomy shadow over your marriage. I want to help you embrace God’s power and love as you stand for your marriage.

In upcoming posts, I will cover topics such as how to gain victory in your marriage, your identity in Christ, prayer, love, navigating differences in marriage, communication, getting support, conflict resolution, forgiveness, discouragement, hope and many more.

It is my hope that as we journey together you will draw closer to God and seek God’s best for your marriage.  If you are in a marriage that is physically abusive, I encourage you to seek help.

If you are in a difficult marriage and have chosen to stand, I would love you to share your personal experience in the comments below.

Scriptures: Exodus 14:14, Philippians 4:19, Psalm 34:17-19, Psalm 20:7, Psalm 18:29, Genesis 2:24-25

Photo Credit: Photo by Artsy Vibes on Unsplash