The Best is Yet to Be

⁴ Marriage should be honored by all -Hebrews 13:4

Today, Richard and I have been married 30 years.  As the joke goes: "I have been happily married 10 years."  "Oh?  I thought you have been married for 30."  "Yes, but only 10 of them were happy!"

Of course that is not the case with me and Richard.  But there is some truth to the joke.  Anyone who has been married for a while can tell you that it is not all "wedded bliss."  Life happens.  There are struggles with family finances, raising children, bad... or just plain wrong... choices, bad moods, health issues, in-law problems.... and the list goes on and on and on.  When you think about it, it can make you wonder how you can even get 10 good years out of 30!  And you would probably think the best 10 would come at the beginning - when love is new and exciting.

But I'm here to tell you that the best part comes AFTER all of that.  When your marriage survives all those pitfalls and you can still look at each other and say from the depths of your soul, "I love you"... well, that is the best love there is.  The poet Robert Browning was right:  "Grow old along with me, the best is yet to be."

I think that after 30 years of marriage I am entitled to give a little advice.  My number one advice to anyone who really wants to be married "until death do you part" is:  Sometimes you have to love your marriage more than you love your spouse.

No matter who you marry, you will have struggles and there will be times when you really, really, really don't even like your spouse anymore and you will really, really, really want to just walk away from the problems and the hurt and the struggle.  But if you hang in there and fight for marriage, you will receive so many blessings in return.

I do understand that it takes TWO to work on a marriage, so I am not criticizing those who have found divorce necessary.  But I am encouraging those who are still relatively new on the road of life together in marriage.

Richard and I celebrated over the weekend by going out for a quiet dinner together.  I asked the question:  "What have been some of your favorite parts of life over the last 30 years?"  It opened the door for some wonderful reminiscing  as we shared the best memories of our life together.

We keep trying to re-work God's gifts, thinking that in our "modern" day things are different.  So we try to change the family and  the institution of marriage.  We think "living together" is just fine.  Divorce is just another bump in life's road.  Marriages aren't meant to last anymore.  But God's plan is still the best plan.  "Until death do you part" is still the best way to do relationships.

Father,
Thank you for Richard.  Thank you for the gift of a partner in life who loves you and who is as dedicated to the "death do you part" idea of marriage as I am.  Thank you for 30 years of happiness, and no-so-happiness.  They have combined to make a wonderful life together.  I pray that we will enjoy another 30 years together.  Amen.

Joys:  Richard; sharing memories; marriages, old and new