GPS to a Joyful Marriage

Living “unequally yoked” with a non-believer causes great difficulty in any marriage. Being “equally yoked” with a spouse does not always guarantee harmony though. An issue Rick and I see with couples frequently, involves the spouse who professes to be a Christian, goes to church, and appears to be a saint in the eyes of other church members. At home though, they are not walking the walk. They often struggle with drugs, alcohol, addictions, and abuse issues, and may not treat their spouse and family as God intended. Dealing with a spouse who doesn’t apply the truth but acts as though they’ve mastered it can be extremely frustrating and painful. This takes me back, again, to the old problem of SELF. That’s what it’s all about. The Christian spouse not living the Christian life at home is usually absorbed in it. They have not yet allowed God to take control and free them from the bondage of the flesh (SELF) that keeps them from a true relationship with God and their spous...

The Bible tells us over and over to ‘put others ahead of ourselves’. That’s what keeps us from leaving before the fire gets too hot. When you think you can’t take another minute of the disharmony, you look into the eyes of your children, or into the eyes of the one you promised to share your life with.(Do this when you're not quite so angry.) Or you think about the amazing God who performed a miracle in your life before. You know He can do it again. You have to crucify the desires of your flesh to do the right thing. What if your spouse does not share the same beliefs that you do? What if they live in a selfish world and make no effort to put your needs ahead of their SELF? It’s difficult enough to share your life with someone who holds the same belief system you do. Trying to do it with an unbeliever is a whole other level of struggle. The best thing we can do for an unbelieving spouse is to quietly pray for them. I say quietly because you don’t ever want to “th...