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WHEN TWO BECOME ONE

Some marriages may be made in heaven, but most of the details
have to be worked out here on earth. Unfortunately, many couples
enter marriage with little or no thought about how such a
relationship is designed to work.

"I only married to get away from home, to get a house of my own
and be independent," admitted a young woman named Jane. "My
parents tried to talk me out of it, but you always think you know
better."

Jane thought she was breaking from her parents. In reality, her
marriage was only a contest to prove she knew best. She failed to
develop a close bond with her husband, however, and "after six
months I knew it was a mistake--even before my baby was born."
Shortly afterward her marriage dissolved.

The names change, the circumstances vary, but the tragedy remains
the same: Far too many marriages eventually end in divorce. A
well-known Christian leader made this observation: "All of my
counseling in marriage and family problems can be categorized on
the basis of three situations: failure to truly leave the
parents, failure to cleave to the one partner, or failure to
develop a unified relationship."

Leave. Cleave. Unify. Moses, the Lord Jesus Christ, and later the
apostle Paul all used these same three concepts to describe how
God designed marriage to work. "For this reason a man will leave
his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will
become one flesh" (Mark 10:7-8).

Marriage involves leaving one's parents and clinging to our
spouse. It is a total, intimate, exclusive union between a
husband and his wife. But that's not all!

Christian marriage is really a triangle: a man, a woman, and
Christ. My wife, Pat, committed her life to Christ at the age of
eight. I was twelve when I made the same decision. When we joined
our lives together, we did so in the presence of the Lord. He is
the third party in our marriage. He is the One who keeps us
together and draws us closer to each other as we seek to draw
closer to Him.

God has designed man and woman to complement each other in the
marital relationship--spiritually, intellectually, emotionally,
volitionally, socially, and physically. Intimacy starts with
spiritual oneness in Christ and eventually knits a couple
together in every area of life. This takes time and commitment.
But the rewards of such intimacy and oneness are fantastic!

"But, Luis," you say, "my spouse and I aren't experiencing that
oneness in our marriage. In fact, sometimes I feel we don't even
know each other. Often we disagree with each other or just go our
separate ways. We're definitely not serving the Lord together.
What should we do?"

When marital problems surface, don't run away from God. Instead,
as God's servant, run to Him. Come to Christ. Lay the problem at
His feet with your spouse.

Gather your spouse in your arms by your bedside. Open up your
Bible, kneel together, read a passage, and talk about what it
says. See what God's Word has to say about your situation. Then
share your prayer requests and, together, talk to God about them.
By doing this you will learn more about your spouse, and God will
show you how two can become one--and grow yet closer every day.

Luis Palau
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Did you expect mere proof to sway my opinion?

Forget the Joneses...I can't keep up with the SIMPSONS!

Folks who think they know it all bug those of us who do.

Friends come and go, enemies accumulate.

Get the facts first - you can distort them later!

Get behind early so you have plenty of time to catch up.
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Faith and love are apt to be spasmodic in the best of minds.
Men and women live on the brink of mysteries and harmonies
into which they never enter and with their hand on the doorlatch
they die outside. GK Chesterton
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Who is Jesus? (http://www.ccci.org/whoisjesus/interactive-journey/)
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