Prov. 13:12: “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.”
- “Hope deferred” is a form of unmet expectations—a longing for something that has
not yet come about. - full truth is found in John. 16:33: "in this world you will have trouble." All couples experience tough times.
- Christian trend researcher George Barna has reported that the divorce rate among Christians is now the same as for non-Christians
Here are a few that all couples should just assume are reasonable to expect:
- Fidelity/Faithfulness—Committing to both physical and emotional faithfulness is not an option inmarriage. It is the very foundation of trust.
- Satisfactory Conflict Resolution—Without a strong, mutual commitment to satisfactory conflictresolution, a married couple is walking a very dangerous tightrope. Realizing that all couples have conflict,we must equip ourselves with both the tools and the Christ-like heart condition that make this possible.It takes concerted effort and shared responsibility.
- Romance—After all, why did you get together in the first place? Wasn’t the sense of romantic,soul-mate connection at the heart of it? You must work to protect this wonderful gift from God—both emotionally and physically.
- Respect—The loss of mutual respect is one of the true indicators that a couple is in deep trouble.Ask yourself what speaks respect to your own heart; then, give the same thing to your partner. Lovetravels right alongside respect, especially for women. As author Emerson Eggerichs has so clearlystated in his book, Love and Respect, men respond very favorably to respect from a spouse
- Friendship—Someone has written that a true friend is someone who lights up when you enter the
room and has no immediate plans for your improvement. That pretty well sums it up.
No comments:
Post a Comment
What do you think?