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God is Working on Your Marriage
God is Working on Your Marriage; Don’t Give Up
Marriage is not easy.
No matter what anyone tells you, no matter what storybooks say, no matter what movies promise, marriage takes work. Too many think if they marry the right person, everything will always work out all the time. It will always be sunshine and roses. But that is not how marriage works.
In marriage there will be disagreements about money, time, spirituality, raising kids, sex, work, in-laws, recreation, needs, etc. You are two different people, from two different backgrounds, with two different perceptions about everything. It stands to reason that sparks will fly, toes will get stepped on, feelings will be hurt. And it doesn’t matter who you are, it will take work, hard work, to overcome these obstacles.
When these problems arise, Satan wants you to think you have gotten into a bad marriage. Or perhaps you are just a bad person. Not so. Your marriage isn’t bad; it is normal. You aren’t bad; you’re human. Rather than throwing in the towel, you need to put on the apron and get to work.
Why? Because you’re not alone. In Philippians 2:12-13, Paul wrote, “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure”(ESV). This passage is not directly about marriage. However, our conduct in marriage is part of how we work out our salvation. We should get to work because God is working. If He weren’t, nothing we do would amount to anything. But He is working. He is working in you and He is working in your marriage.
So, did you mess up big this morning or yesterday? Did you have a huge fight last night and wonder when it was going to stop? Is Satan tempting you to think it will never get better? Don’t hand him the battle. Hang on. Pick up your cross again today. Maybe things aren’t perfect in you or your marriage right now, but God is working on you and it. Perhaps you think you will never make it work, but you can trust that God will.
--Edwin L. Crozier
