Strong Marriages Are Good for Everyone

In Romans 12:9-10 I read, “Love sincerely . . . Hold on to what is good. Be devoted to each other like a loving family. Excel in showing respect for each other.” (GW)

Strong marriages are good for everyone. They benefit the individuals who are part of those relationships and can even help to strengthen whole societies.

Throughout history, marriage has been the fundamental building block of every society and culture. When marriages have been strong, nations have been strong. When marriages and families weaken, cultures decline.

Strong marriages benefit the individuals in the relationship too. God uses marriage to perfect my character. In relationships I learn to be unselfish and loving. If I get married, no relationship will have a greater impact on my life.

If not married, God can and will use other people to build character. Single people don’t get off the hook! Godly others-focused singles play a critical role in flourishing cultures as well. In fact, sometimes, they play roles that married couples and those with children can’t. The truth is, societies also need singles to live in strong, fearless relationships with others.

One of the main purposes of life is to grow up and realize it’s not all about me. In fact, real happiness comes from giving my life away, being unselfish, serving, and loving. This is called maturity.

Life is a laboratory of learning how to love. It’s the most important thing in life because God is love, and he wants me to become like him. He wants to make me like Jesus Christ. He wants to build my character.

If married, the number one tool that God uses in my life to build Christ-like character is my spouse. Every day I get hundreds of opportunities to think about the other person instead of myself.

The Bible says, “Love sincerely . . . Hold on to what is good. Be devoted to each other like a loving family. Excel in showing respect for each other” (Romans 12:9-10 GW).

Am I doing this in my marriage? Love washes the dishes, takes out the garbage and puts the other person first.

Excel in showing respect for each other so that I grow to be more like Christ. It will lead to a stronger relationship for myself and a stronger society for everyone.

In summary, strong marriages are good for everyone. They benefit the individuals who are part of those relationships and can even help to strengthen whole societies. Marriage has been the fundamental building block of every society and culture. When marriages have been strong, nations have been strong. When marriages and families weaken, cultures decline. Strong marriages benefit the individuals in the relationship too. God uses marriage to perfect my character. I learn to be unselfish and loving. If I get married, no relationship will have a greater impact on my life. If not married, God can and will use other people to build character. Godly others-focused singles also play a critical role in flourishing cultures as well. Sometimes they play roles that married couples and those with children can’t. As such societies also need singles to live in strong, fearless relationships with others. One of the main purposes of life is to grow up and realize it’s not all about me. Real happiness comes from giving my life away, being unselfish, serving, and loving. This is called maturity. Life is a laboratory of learning how to love. It’s the most important thing in life because God is love, and he wants me to become like him. He wants to make me like Jesus Christ. He wants to build my character. If married, the number one tool that God uses in my life to build Christ-like character is my spouse. Every day I get hundreds of opportunities to think about the other person instead of myself. So we should excel in showing respect for each other so that we can grow to be more like Christ. It will lead to a stronger relationship and a stronger society for everyone.

Most of us have learned how to be courteous to others, how to speak kindly, avoid hurting their feelings, and appear to take an interest in them. We may even be skilled in pretending to feel compassion when we hear of others' needs, or to become indignant when we learn of injustice. But God calls us to genuine love that goes far beyond pretense and politeness. Genuine love requires concentration and effort. It means helping others become better people. It demands our time, money, and personal involvement. No individual has the capacity to express love to a whole community, but the body of Christ in your town does.  Look for people who need my love, and look for ways you and your fellow believers can love your community for Christ.  We can honor others in one of two ways. One involves ulterior motives. We honor our bosses so they will reward us, our employees so they will work harder, the wealthy so they will contribute to our cause, the powerful so they will use their power for us and not against us. God's way involves love. As Christians, we honor people because they have been created in God's image, because they are our brothers and sisters in Christ, and because they have a unique contribution to make to Christ's church. Does God's way of honoring others sound too difficult for your competitive nature? Why not try to outdo one another in showing honor? Put others first.