If you’ve been married a few years or a long while, how prepared are you to encourage and help those just starting out on the marriage path?
Recently a couple I know celebrated their twentieth wedding anniversary. Someone commented that in this day and age where many marriages never last anywhere near that long, this couple is an encouragement to others.
I remember too when I said once how long Mick and I had been married the person looked at me in stunned amazement. She then congratulated me on our long marriage. Funnily enough it doesn’t seem that long at all. Sometimes we wonder where the years went.
Have you ever thought that you and you spouse might be an example to others. What will others see as they look at your marriage? Will they see a marriage that is strong, where the husband and wife support and care for each other in good times and bad? Or will they see a marriage punctuated by bickering, arguments, negativity and criticism?
When reading Valorie’s blog a while back about what will it take for experienced Moms, she suggested how important it is for those who have been there to share their experiences with those new to being a Mom. I’m going to suggest that those of us who’ve been married longer have a responsibility to be a positive example of what marriage is all about. We need to be able to encourage and help strengthen the marriages we know, not by offering unasked for advice but by setting an example of what a good lasting marriage looks like.
Children learn more by example than any other way. We can tell children what to do but until we show them by example in our own lives, it is meaningless. That’s what we need to do with our marriages. With divorce on the increase and likely to get worse as harsh economic times and society put more pressures on marriage, we need to be showing others what is important. A strong marriage is important, not just as far as that couple is concerned, but as far as society is concerned.
One practical way we can help young married couples is by offering to baby-sit for them so they can have a date night out together.
Related blogs
Secrets of Long Lasting Marriages
What’s Wrong with Young Marriages?
What Makes for a Happy, Lastng Marriage?