The closer a man and his wife get to Christ, the clearer they see how important it is for them to stay close to each other.

A CHILD once asked a father
to draw a picture of a stepfather for him.
The father did as he was asked.
Then his son said, “No, Dad,
you left out something.”

The father looked again
at the double upside V he had drawn
on the page and the lines he had drawn
as the ladder’s steps.

“What did I leave out?” he asked.
The little boy replied,
“The part where you put the print can.”

The little boy may have been
more interested in paint cans
than properly engineered ladder.

But what the father later realized
was that the “crosspiece”
that extends to provide a resting place
for paints cans is the one part of a stepladder
that is truly indispensable!

Without it, the inverted V shape of a ladder
would collapse to the ground.
It is the crosspiece that allows
a stepladder to support weight.

If a couple is only joined by a recited vow,
their marriage may quickly collapse.
If Christ, however, forms the crosspiece
that holds their lives into a sturdy triangular shape,
they can withstand much pressure.

With Christ in the center,
a couple grows closer to each other
as they grow closer to Christ.

Marriage Build according to God’s Pattern

The closer a man and his wife get to Christ,
the clearer they see how important
it is for them to stay close to each other.

A CHILD once asked a father
to draw a picture of a stepfather for him.
The father did as he was asked.
Then his son said, “No, Dad, you left out something.”

The father looked again
at the double upside V he had drawn
on the page and the lines he had drawn
as the ladder’s steps. “What did I leave out?”
he asked. The little boy replied,
“The part where you put the print can.”

The little boy may have been
more interested in paint cans
than properly engineered ladder.
But what the father later realized
was that the “crosspiece” that extends
to provide a resting place for paints cans

is the one part of a stepladder
that is truly indispensable! Without it,
the inverted V shape of a ladder
would collapse to the ground.
It is the crosspiece that allows
a stepladder to support weight.

If a couple is only joined
by a recited vow, their marriage
may quickly collapse. If Christ,
however, forms the crosspiece
that holds their lives into
a sturdy triangular shape,
they can withstand much pressure.

With Christ in the center,
a couple grows closer
to each other as
they grow closer to Christ.

A personal relationship with Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of marriage

MARRIAGE involves a blending of lives,
not merely a “joining.”
Many marriages flounder because
each continues to look back over
their shoulder at freedoms and relationships
they had in the past.

When a couple invites Jesus Christ
to be the cornerstone to their marriage
the strong foundation upon which they build their relationship
they are inviting Him to walk before them.

Then He is free to lead them forward
 into the unique purpose He has for them as married couple.

We are unique as individuals,
but each marriage is also unique.
It is as individuals and one of a kind
as the two people involved.

Just as God created us
as completely original individuals,
so we need to invite Him to make our marriages
completely original relationships.

This can only happen when each person
in the relationship yield his or her individuality
to God’s higher purpose.

C.S Lewis said,
“Self exist to be abdicated.
In self-giving we touch a rhythm,
not only of all creation, but of all being,
for the Eternal word also gives Himself in sacrifice.”

Marriage was designed
to teach us about our relationship with Jesus.
The key to a good marriage is loving self-sacrifice.

An argument is the longest distance between two points.

In Letters to Karen,
a book written to his daughter by Author Charlie W. Shedd,
he shares “Our Seven Official Rules for a Good, Clean Fight.” They are:

Before we begin we must both agree that the time is right.
We will remember that our only aim is deeper understanding.
We will check our weapons often to be sure they’re not deadly.
We will lower our voices one notch instead of raising them two.
We will never quarrel or reveal private matters in public.
We will discuss an armistice whenever either of us calls “halt.
When we have come to terms, we will put it away till we both agree
it needs more discussing.

Says Shedd,
“No small part of the zest in a good marriage
comes from working through differences.
Learning to zig and zag with the entanglements;
studying each other’s reactions under pressure;
handling one another’s emotions intelligently all these offer a challenge
that simply can’t be beat for sheer fun and excitement.”

We can experience that “sheer fun and excitement”
when we learn to apply the above rules for a good,
clean fight and apply ourselves to open, honest communication.

Family Begins With A Commitment Of Love.

If you were to hold a lump of dark green clay
in one hand and a lump of light green clay
in the other, you could clearly identify
the two shades of color.

However, if you w
ere to mold
the two lumps together,
kneading them thoroughly,
you would see just one lump of green clay
at least at first glance.

Upon closer inspection,
you could see the separate lines
of dark and light green clay,
yet it would be virtually impossible
to separate the clay
into two pure colors again.

That is an image of what
it means for a husband and wife
to become “one flesh.”
Love binds couple together,
especially as they knead out
some of their differences and develop
a life of mutual goals, activities and relationships.

A grandma once told
her young granddaughter
that Jim and June were coming for a visit.
With eager anticipation,
they baked special treats
and cleaned the house thoroughly

in expectation of their over night stay.
Upon their arrival the little girl exclaimed
with wide-eyed wonder,
“Nanna, there are tow people.
Someone came with Jim and June!”
just like the well-blended clay,
in marriage we are no longer two, but one.