Reflecting on Why You Got Married in the First Place

As my beautiful bride and I look forward to our 33rd anniversary, (and it being Valentine's Day weekend and all ...), it serves us well to look back to when we first got married, and how we have grown and matured and changed over the years. Are the reasons we originally got married still there?  If not, how are we committed to this present union? How are we glorifying God by serving one another in this shadow of the eternal marriage with Christ?

This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. Ephesians 5:32

Larry McCall, author of the book, A Seasoned Marriage: Living the Gospel in the Middle Years and Beyond, reflects on how the marriage of our youth ages over time. I am not as energetic as I used to be. Not as fit or good looking. I'm showing signs of cranky-old-curmudgon if I am being honest. So, what does a beautiful wife see in me that keeps her holding on? 

You can access Larry's article by clicking --> here <-- He relates a story about the middle years of his marriage when he and his wife were struggling. Then he encountered Bob:

During this marital low point, we met an older Christian gentleman in our community whose wife of many years was in the latter stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Each day, Bob would visit his wife in the nursing home to spoon-feed her, change her diaper, sponge-bathe her, and sing love songs to her. He did this not in one heroic act, but quietly, faithfully, day after day, week after week, month after month.

This helped turn Larry's focus off of what he thought he wasn't getting from his wife, onto the unmerited favor we have already received from God. We are already fulfilled - we have no other right response but to fill others up from our abundance - starting with our beloved!!

Reflection to those early years is good, but it should reflect the goodness of God. Instead of growing bitter because the "puppy love" of youth isn't there like it used to be, we should serve our spouse as a loving and free gift - then watch what God will do with that over the course of weeks, months, even years!