Podcast: https://bit.ly/3M8JUFk
Today, Lori and I celebrate our forty-first anniversary!
There were a number of folks who thought we should not get married. And I’m sure many we knew back then would be shocked we are not only still married but also both very happy with our marriage.
There were certainly reasons to be concerned about us making it. We had plenty of the things experts point to as marriage-killing problems. And we lacked a good support network.
What we did have was a common belief that God could make our marriage work if we let Him (doing things like prayer, seeking His guidance, and surrendering our own wills).
Beyond that, here are a few things that have made a major difference to us:
- Generosity: We both work to give more than is expected or deserved.
- Grace: We give grace as often and as well as we can.
- Gratitude: We both express gratitude all the time. And we look for things for which to be grateful.
- Non-sexual touch: We snuggle a lot. Unless we have to be out the door very early, we set the alarm so we can snuggle for at least ten minutes each morning. We also hug during the day and touch when we pass.
- Caring about what is important to the other: If one of us is into something, the other works to have a decent understanding of that thing. We support what the other enjoys doing, even if we don’t do it ourselves.
- We share our faith: We do a devotional together each morning. We discuss the Bible and theology. And we minister together.
- Trying new things together: From RVing to homesteading, we have gone all in on various new pursuits.
Which of these could you intentionally cultivate in your marriage starting today?
~ This is Paul, and this is what Doing Marriage Well looks like for us.
Widget fulfils the “retriever” part of being a Labrador retriever by bringing things she “finds” to me.
I can’t find a tooth mark on this, and I have no idea how she does that, as she was running with it.
Image Credit: © Paul H Byerly created with ideogram.ai & Paul Byerly
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