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IS YOUR MARRIAGE ON A FIRM FOUNDATION?There is a story about a famous man who was studying when young and was finding it pretty hard going. He had almost made up his mind that it was all too much for him, and that he would give it up. Despondently, he flicked over the pages of the text book in front of him. He came to the last page, and there on the inside back cover he saw a strip of paper pasted over something. He was so curious to find out what this piece of paper concealed that he stripped it off. When the paper was removed he found himself looking at one short sentence. It read: 'Go on, young man, go on'.He did go on and became a famous surgeon, saving the lives of many people. Here was a man who was on the verge of turning back too soon, but fortunately for mankind, he went on. On Friday, July 11th, my wife Vera and I celebrate our Golden Wedding anniversary, 50 years of married life. Some of you may have already passed that milestone. But in addition to our 50 years of marriage we have known one another since we were 5 that makes a total of 67 years. We lived only a few doors from each other, we started primary school at the same time, in the same class for 6 years. And if that wasn.t unusual, Vera and I have been in business and ministry together for 43 years. Whilst there are many couples who could handle 50 years of marriage, there might be fewer who could also work alongside their partner every day for most of their married life. For some years I was a marriage celebrant. When I counselled a couple the thought often crossed my mind whether their marriage would last. With almost 50% of marriages ending in divorce, I wondered if they would turn back too soon or would be inspired by the message: "go on young man, go on". There have been no major upsets in our married life. Like all couples we have had our disagreements but by and large things have gone fairly smoothly. We would all have theories as to how best to remain not only married, but also as close working partners, good friends and lovers for that length of time. I have two theories. The first is that we have Jesus and that has meant that we have not only stayed together but have become closer since we came back to him 40 years ago. The second theory, and one that is common to all long time married couples regardless of their belief, is that we have worked at it. Like all good things they don't just happen, they need input. I know of many couples whose marriage has failed. I often receive emails from recipients of my .Word for the Week. - as recently as this week - concerned about the future of their partnership and asking for prayer and advice. My advice is always the same, read together 1 Corinthians chapter 13 and pray together, inviting Christ into your lives and into your marriage. A successful and lasting marriage, like all good things, doesn.t just happen, it needs input and a desire to succeed. Rev. Peter Marshall wrote: "We are souls living in bodies. Therefore when we really fall in love, it isn't just physical attraction. If it is just that, it won't last. Ideally, it's also spiritual attraction. God has opened our eyes and let us see into someone's soul. We have fallen in love with the inner person, the person who is going to live forever. That's why God is the greatest asset to romance. He thought it up in the first place. Include him in every part of your marriage, and he will lift it above the level of the mundane to something rare and beautiful and lasting." Have a good week, Pastor Ron. A companion Bible study is available as page 2 of the weekly message. Click here for that study.
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