Love & Marriage

"Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." 
Ephesians 5:21 (NIV)

Frank Sinatra had a hit in 1955 called "Love and Marriage." Most of you know how it goes. Love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage.

Somewhere along the line, we've unhitched the horse and lit the carriage on fire.

In 1960, 59% of adults between 18 and 29 were married. Today that number is 20%. And 76% of marriages between 2015 and 2019 were preceded by cohabitation, compared to just 11% in 1965. The script God wrote has been replaced with hookup, shack up, break up.

This matters more than most people realize. Marriage was to be the foundation of the family. The family was to be the foundation of the community. The community was to be the foundation of the state. Pull out the bottom block and the whole thing shifts.

It's not coincidental that God's Word begins with a wedding between Adam and Eve and ends with a wedding between Christ and the church. Marriage matters to God.

So if you're serious about following Christ, your life has to reflect His design, not the culture's. If you're single, don't become cynical about marriage or decide that living together is close enough. 

If you're no longer married, don't disregard what God designed. And if you've been married 50 years, don't become cynical either. Become the opposite. Grow in devotion, on purpose, even on the days it seems impossible.

God started with a wedding in the book of Genesis, and He ends with one in Revelation. As you obey His design, He'll redeem the broken years, hard seasons, and everything you’ve thought was too far gone.

Prayer: Father, thank You that marriage was Your idea from the beginning and that it still matters to You. Help me honor Your design today, in my home, in my choices, and in the way I love the person You gave me. In Jesus' Name, Amen.