Promises That Last Forever: In Joy and In Sorrow

Marriage vows are full of covenants. Covenants are binding agreements, or promises that cannot be broken. If you have experienced the pain of a broken marriage, I pray you will find the grace and healing that Jesus offers. His perspective always brings hope! Know that God’s desire for you is that your marriage vow is rooted in a firm “yes” to your spouse. A covenant. “In plenty and in want.” “In joy and in sorrow.” This is the next part of what most people speak in traditional marriage vows. Life is full of times of joy and times of sorrow. Delights and disappointments. Highs and lows. Good times and bad times. Do you want to know another “termite” that eats away at American marriages? Feelings. Let me tell you some fatherly wisdom as someone who has seen children and now grandchildren being raised for decades: Your feelings will change during years of marriage for a variety of reasons. You will have tough times. You will have bad days. You will run into physical issues in your body. There are a million reasons that your feelings will change - often daily! A marriage vow understands that even when your feelings change from joy to sorrow and everything in between, you honor your covenant vows. Covenants are made from a place of conviction and exist in spite of wavering circumstances or emotions. A covenant focuses on God and his promises and not our momentary feelings. As you work through your vows regardless of your feelings or your circumstances, guess what happens over time? True love increases. Isn’t that Jesus’s true goal for all of us who follow him?