What makes marriage work?

I was talking with my cousin the other day over a hot cup of coffee. We were discussing marriage, what makes a marriage work and how to be a good wife. What characteristics are found in a good, strong, God honouring marriage?

Kids, teens have dream jobs. They look forward to be a teacher, scientist, cook or dancer. They dream and plan. They prepare themselves and practise. My sister wants to be an author. She is already practising and doing research. She is finding out what makes a good author and a good book. But I dream of the day I will be a wife and mother. I get funny looks when people ask me what I want to be and I answer a wife and mother. So I usually just say a teacher or nanny. And I really do want to be a teacher or nanny. But above all, my end goal, my final destination, my biggest dream is to be a good wife and mother. I look forward to the day when I am called a wife and I call him my husband. It makes me happy just thinking about it!

So, after talking to my cousin about this she gave  me a suggestion. Just as my sister is preparing herself and doing research, so should I. I can read books about it. I can read God's word about it to see what the creator of it has to say. She suggested that I ask some married couples about marriage. "What does it takes to have a good, strong, God honouring marriage." And so I did and these are some of the answers I got back. Enjoy!

Hi Darcy. Like in many couples, there are ups and there are downs. When there are ups, it's easy. But when there are downs, we need to add water to our wine. It's not always easy but with the help of God, it's possible. Prayer helps me a lot. I pray for our life as a couple and for my family. When we got married , we promised to be united for life. For me that is important. It's because of that that I pray for God to help us to understand each other, your grandfather and I. I hope this answers your question.

Learn to forgive

With the presence of God in our hearts, with communication, with trust, with respect...it works according to the will of God.

So, that is what some of my friends said about marriage. The biggest theme through everyone's answer is that God must be present. The 'glue' between you and your husband should be Christ. We should lean on him in the hard times and praise him in the good times. Also, respect, communication and forgiveness were common answers.

I highly recommend this for the other single, dating, courting or engaged girls out there. It helps to see what those around you have learnt over there years. You can learn from their mistakes and learn what God has taught them. Be prepared for it will make it easier in the long run. But above all read God's word for he created marriage and he would know best what makes it work. Next time how about we discuss some verses in the Bible that talk about marriage. But for now, that's all I have for you. Talk to you next time.

Darcy-Rea