GPS to a Joyful Marriage

Many of us are not born into the world with a Bible in our hands and parents who lovingly lead us to God.  We have to experience the world first and make the decision if we will follow the ways of the world or the ways of the cross.  Few are brought up in a true Christian home that shelters them from the ways of the world, while teaching them fulfillment in the hands of God. I think of an associate pastor at one of the churches we attended, whom we used to jokingly say, was saved from the womb.  He lived a sheltered life and always had God in it, thanks to his loving parents.  He’s a wonderful person but not the first person you would think to go to for help in a truly difficult situation.  His world experience is limited. That’s not to say he isn’t a wonderful Christian and pastor, he just wasn’t called to go witness to drug users or alcoholics or adulterers.  Most of us have to go through unimaginable trials before we turn our lives to God....

Do you ever wonder what this life is all about?  Why are we here?  What is our purpose?  God put each and every one of us here for a reason.  The key is to discover that reason, your purpose on Earth.  Until we do, life will seem worthless, crowded with unfulfilling business.  Not knowing God’s purpose for you brings frustration in your faith and in your walk with Him. I’m always surprised at the few people in a church congregation who truly know what their God-given purpose is.  I believe this is a crucial part of our existence.  How do we live a life without a plan from the God who created us, who put us here strictly to complete that plan?  It will be a life of dissatisfaction, discontentment and displeasure.   John Bevere says that when we face the judgment day, we are not going to be judged on how many souls we’ve won, rather on how well we’ve completed the plan God gave us for our life. We are not put on Earth to sa...

So you’ve been through serious difficulties in your marriage and have struggled to forgive.  You don’t know that you truly love your spouse anymore.  The state of marriage can be overwhelming during these times, so what do you do? First of all, you need to make sure that you’ve forgiven your spouse for any wrong that may have clouded your feelings of love.  Remember, forgiveness is a choice - one you need to make every time you’re reminded of indiscretions against you.  You can’t move on to a healthy marriage until you forgive, as God forgave you. As for falling out of love, let me tell you how God returned my love for my husband back to me. I thought I had fallen completely out of love with my husband when we went through our marriage crisis.  My friends at the time told me I shouldn’t stay in my marriage if I didn’t love him anymore.  (If you have friends that tell you this, they are not your friends.  I suggest you find new ones.) ...

The first thing necessary to overcome infidelity in a marriage is forgiveness.  You have to forgive.  Unforgiveness is like taking poison and hoping it will kill the person you can’t forgive.  It will eat you up.  It will cause you to say and do things you normally wouldn’t say and do.  It will destroy your life.   It will kill you in the form of disease manifested by the venom of unforgiveness. Forgiving is not easy.  It is not a feeling or emotion; it is an act.  A feat you will have to face every day until you’ve conquered it. Along with forgiving comes forgetting.  It’s hard to erase the image of your spouse with another person.  That is a betrayal no one ever wants to face.  Yet you have to move on from that, get past it.   You may never forget, but you can’t hold onto the pain of unfaithfulness indefinitely.  As long as you do, there will be no recovery, no resurrection of your marriage. Resur...