Marriage was the first ceremony God announced after creating man, Adam, and his wife, Eve. He instituted it by blessing them saying they should be fruitful and multiply, and also take dominion of everything he had created.
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. Genesis 1:27-28
Now, this is the blessing that should go with every other marriage that is in existence, because this is the will of God.
However, as time went by, we began to see a lot of corruption and decadence worsening in everything that man would do, and this eventually entered the married home.
A lot of anomalies, the things that once were not, now becoming the order of the day.
As believers, we do not walk according to the dictates of the world’s standards, on the contrary, the people of the world are to learn from us.
Jesus said, “Let your light shine before men”, which means to show a different way of doing things.
Divorce rates have gone up in many parts of the world, and every day we continue to see new machinations that war against the once pure institution of marriage that was ordained by God.
We are not to be like those of the world, so in this matter of marriage, the bible has taught us a lot of things that we need to know and observe if we want our marriage to be honorable and pleasing to God.
If we want to enjoy the marriage that God originally intended, there are ways to protect it.
There will definitely be turbulences, but they should not be the cause of a break-up. If we learn the ways of God, they are life and can give us peace and joy in our homes.
These are not the all-in-all-steps-to-protecting-your-marriage, but these steps I believe are an embodiment of many other things that come under.
Love Truly
Love is the greatest force in existence, why?
Because God is love. Without love, forget about creating anything else in your marriage or outside of it. Without love in your marriage, there will be no laughter, no peace, no joy, no progress, nothing good will be birthed. God teaches us to love, and much more our spouses.
“So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself.” Ephesians 5:28
Also,
“That they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children…” Titus 2:4
So, both the husband and the wife are admonished to love each other. The true love of Christ must dwell in and lead them. For there is no substitute to the love of God.
Be of One Mind
The idea of God for the marriage is that the man and the woman come together to become one and become an independent formidable force, independent of external influences.
“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Genesis 2:24
It was the original intention of God and still remains so today. God has not changed this principle, and neither should we try to change it. When the couple walks together, they are stronger and an unstoppable force.
“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor.
For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up.
Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him…” Ecclesiastes 4:9,10 & 12
The power of two standing together in unity is clearly defined.
The Heart of Forgiveness
This is another point that many may overlook, but the evils that can spring out of unforgiveness are unimaginable. When there is no forgiveness, it is a clear mark of the lack of love. Love comes with the ability to forgive no matter what the sin may have been.
Jesus teaches us in the prayer to say:
“And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” Matthew 6:12
This is the true character of love, that you expect that men will transgress against you even as God does expect us to transgress. He created a system for us to ask and receive forgiveness every single day, and we ought to do the same to everyone, especially our spouses.
Without forgiveness, there is no progress, there is no joy and many other things the devil brings in will have a smooth sail to causing havoc in the marriage.
These are some of the basics that couples must take into account if they are willing to protect their marriages and wish to see it prosper.
The will of God is that the man and woman remain together through thick and thin as a show of their love and commitment to each other, because no matter the situation, it will only last a while if they trust in God.