Why Attend Marriage Events, Reason #1 - Staying Together Isn’t Good Enough

On Thursday our church (libertybaptistchurch.ws) is privileged to host Mitch Temple, author of The Marriage Turnaround.  Mitch will be with us from 7:00-9:00 sharing on the topic of “Making Marriage Your Business.”  Why should you take the time to be here for this important event?  This week I will share with you some reasons why you should attend:

REASON #1 STAYING TOGETHER ISN'T GOOD ENOUGH

Whenever we talk about marriage inevitably we also talk about divorce.  We often cite that the number one indicator of failing marriages in America is the 50% + divorce rate at which we go from “I do” to “I don’t.”  While this statistic is alarming, it may also be misleading.

We may be misled to think that simply “staying” married is a success.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  While it is true that the Bible condemns divorce, this is not all the Bible says about marriage.  The marriage is to be an illustration of the love Christ has for the church.  Marriage is to be the experience of becoming one with another person.  Marriage is to be a covenant fulfilled.  While the Bible says that we should not divorce, it says so much more about what we SHALL rather than about what we SHALL NOT.  If your greatest commitment to marriage is "Hey babe, I'm staying!" I would wager your spouse is looking for a little more out of the relationship than that. 

Marriage conferences, retreats, books, and other resources (at least the ones with which I have been involved) help me more with the SHALL than the SHALL NOT.  So I’m not considering divorcing my wife (she may find this to be good news), so what am I considering for her?  Am I considering how to love her?  Am I considering ways to make our marriage even better than it already is?  I am not going to divorce her - but that isn’t good enough.  What am I going to do for her as we continue in marriage?  

Don’t think that just because you and your wife have “stayed” married for 10, 20, 30, or plus years that you don’t need to invest some time in a marriage event.  Even though a couple may not have traded in their marriage license for divorce papers does not mean that the idea of marriage is being fulfilled.  Marriage conferences are not so much about “staying married” as they are about improving marriage.  We all have room for improvement.