* GRACE *

Marriage

David and Brandi – 13th Anniversary Getaway

With so many people choosing to end their marriages, there is one thing I wish all people would understand and live…marriage takes work and diligence. If we choose not to work on our marriages, they eventually fail. As the adage goes, “The grass is greener where you water it.” Yellow and brown spots need watering, not abandonment.

One of the things we have always done as a couple to “water” our relationship is to make sure we are keeping communication lines open with each other. We talk every night, not just about the kids or what the next day’s activities were going to be, but we talk about our dreams and hopes for the future with each other. We always approach our challenging conversations with love and kindness. We don’t scream at each other or blame each other, though the adversary certainly tries to get us to. We own up to our part of the challenge we’re facing and are forgiving of each other.

Lifting our relationships to a higher plane and keeping a marriage alive and thriving, always starts with ourselves. We need to see our spouses as people with their own thoughts, feelings, trials, and choices. We need to see them as people and seek to understand them instead of treating them as objects. It’s easier said than done, but with practice and application, it works!

If you’d like more information there are many resources, and here are just a few that have worked for me and that I recommend:

• The Anatomy of Peace – I really loved the book, and it helped me to see people as people instead of objects.
• The Business of Marriage – Dino and Shannon put on an awesome event and have some helpful products as well. My husband and I had a fabulous time at The Business of Marriage seminar at the beginning of April. We came home after three days and felt like newlyweds again. I can’t say we haven’t had opposition, but we came home with more tools to help us make our good marriage into a fantastic one.  We always felt uplifted and inspired, never like we needed “fixing.”  They are excellent at helping people find the answers within themselves to help their relationship thrive.

If you find yourself struggling in any way in your marriage (large or small) or know that you need to add something to your tool belt, seek inspiration and resources to help you make your marriage better. As the wise Benjamin Franklin said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

So, what are you doing to help your marriage improve?