Why You Need God in Your Marriage

     It's pretty obvious by the title of this blog post that it will include my thoughts on God and religion in marriage. If you don't believe in God, I respect that, but I think there are still some principles you can learn from my message I have to share today. 

    I'm getting tired of the "2020" memes I constantly see on Facebook, but these memes go to show that we all agree that this year has brought unexpected stressors in our lives. People have lost jobs, loved ones, and their insanity with having to quarantine because of the COVID-19 pandemic. While not every year in our marriage won't be filled with such unexpected events as this, we will still face many stressors, both expected and unexpected. 

    Will there ever be a time in our marriages where we don't feel stress? There's a saying I once heard that goes, "If you're not stressed, you're dead." Yikes, haha. Now that saying doesn't mean we should constantly be feeling stress, but it means that there will always be events in our life that cause stress. But my hope is that there will be moments of peace and joy in all of our marriages despite the stressors we face in our lives.

    My marriage over the past 2 years has faced some stressors. One example I want to share is when we first got married. We both moved out of state to start our first semester of college and had no jobs or friends for several months. Looking back at these major stressors in our lives, how on earth did we survive without either of us going insane? But I believe that the biggest reason why James and I are still here and happily married is because of God. Despite how busy our day would be, James and I made the goal to always take the time to pray and read the scriptures together daily. Now I admit, there would be some days where I didn't want to continue this habit because it was late and I just wanted to sleep instead. (Some days we still feel like this but do it anyway). However, I noticed that taking the time to read the scriptures and pray helped me feel closer to God and closer to James. It's hard to describe, but I found that as I made the effort to strengthen my relationship with God, it helped James and I feel more connected. 

    I once was taught this diagram that demonstrates the impact God has on our marriage. If both partners focus on keeping a good connection with God, they will find themselves moving closer to each other as they draw closer to God. I have seen this effect happen on my own marriage and I've also unfortunately seen the opposite effect happen. I believe that God is our Heavenly Father who cares for all of us. Because He loves us, He wants to provides guidance, comfort, and any other type of assistance for us. So why wouldn't God want to help strengthen our marriages as well?

    I have found that when I turn to my Heavenly Father in the hardest of times, I feel more gratitude and love for Him. While a trial in my life could become an opportunity for me to turn away from Him, it becomes the opposite. This "pattern" also reflects what happens in my relationship with James as well. I believe this happens because we invite the Spirit into our hearts as we try to follow God's teachings better. I know that James and I have only started the beginning of our marriage, but learning from that first major stressor/event at the beginning of our marriage has helped me recognize that God comes first in my life, so that my spouse can be a strong second.