GPS to a Joyful Marriage

Some people find it difficult to act in love.  “But I don’t feel that way - it’s just not me,” or “I would be faking to act like that when I don’t feel it.”  To many, love is a selfish need that controls action, not an act that blesses others. Many of us aren’t taught how to truly love.  Raised in dysfunctional families, we desperately grasp for any tidbit of love not realizing it is meant to be given away.  Only when it is given away can we fully receive the benefits of true love.  Love is a selfless act. To most of us, acting in love is not natural.  A lot of times we don’t feel like it.  We need to train ourselves to watch for any moment to reach out in love, especially to our spouse and children. Let’s look at the word ‘act’.  When you think of the word ‘act’ regarding the theatre, it’s a verb that means ‘pretend’.  Sometimes you have to pretend that you feel a certain way. Oh, but that sounds so fake!  Shouldn’t we be ‘real’...

Love is a verb.  Hmm, I keep seeing that phrase.  I think it's cool how God obviously shows you something to invite you to explore it deeper. I look at the definition of love (on, none other, my computer dictionary) and it does not describe the kind of love I believe God intended for marriage. (It’s a WORLD dictionary.) 1.  Feel tender affection for somebody: to feel tender affection for somebody such as a close relative or friend, or for something such as a place, an ideal, or an animal  2.  Feel desire for somebody: to feel romantic and sexual desire and longing for somebody  3.  Like something very much: to like something, or like doing, something very much Feel and like are not tangible action verbs.  We don’t usually have control over how we feel or what we like or dislike; we can’t consciously make ourselves feel or like.  We can make ourselves show love though.  It may not be genuine at first, but in time, you can build yo...

As of today, I will only post articles on Mondays for awhile. Rick and I watched an interesting show yesterday. I believe it was called “Boot Camp for Tough Love.” Interesting. Unmarried couples, (mostly dysfunctional ones of course), were invited to attend this boot camp for seven weeks. At the end, they would either break up or become engaged. They were invited to leave if they didn't want to make that decision in the end. My fascination insisted I sit through an hour of it.  I surprisingly find myself, someone who dislikes reality shows,  wanting to tune in again just to see how the host will handle these couples. The host of the show was amazingly brutal with these couples, pulling no punches and openly pointing out the flaws in each relationship. Most couples were deeply offended. I thought the whole program a bit silly until the host separated the men from the women and each entered a room with tuxes for the men and bridal gowns for the women. They were told, “If...