From This Day Forward:
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The New Bible Dictionary, Third Edition I. The Status of Marriage
the unique relationship of husband and wife, and serves as a picture of the relationship between God and his people
WHAT DID YOU EXPECT?
Is your marriage what you expected it to be?
The truth is that all of us carry all sorts of expectations into marriage. We imagine what it might be like, constructing ideal circumstances. But then when marriage inevitably doesn’t meet those expectations, many of us experience the crash: letdown, disappointment, pain, anger, frustration, despair — often even divorce. We wonder what went wrong when we thought we’d met Mr. or Mrs. Right. We wonder how we could’ve been so mistaken about this person we thought we wanted to spend our lives with.
But here’s the hard truth about marriage: no one’s expectations hold up.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 10). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Call me crazy, but I believe with all my heart that, yes, it is possible to have a great marriage.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (pp. 10-11). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
The truth is that in our culture today, most couples spend months and months planning and preparing for their wedding. They endlessly discuss and negotiate tiny details, like what color the type on the invitations should be and what kind of flowers to have, what kind of dress to wear and what food to serve at the reception. They expend hours and hours of time and effort and spend thousands of dollars. And yet these same two thoughtful people invest absolutely nothing in preparing for their marriage relationship. A successful wedding lasts maybe an hour (not counting the reception). You say that you want your marriage to last for the rest of your life, so doesn’t it deserve at least the same forethought and attention to detail?
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 11). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 11). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Your key to a joyful, life-giving marriage begins with your completely understanding this one simple phrase: “I, [your name here], take you, [your spouse’s name here], to have and to hold, from this day forward.”
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 11). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 14). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward:
Those four little words are packed full of hope, brimming with promise: “From this day forward.”
What happened in your past doesn’t matter. Did you mess up when you were dating? That’s okay! Have you struggled with communicating? That’s okay! Have you said things you wish you could take back? That’s okay! Have you done things you regret? It’s okay. God’s mercies, his compassions, never fail. They are new every morning. And he is always faithful.
It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 9). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Draw a line at today. Your new lifelong love life, your new love relationship with each other, the greatest marriage you can imagine, begins now. Today. From this day forward. Right now, in this very moment, you can commit that everything that happens from now on will represent your sacred commitment to your spouse before a holy God.
Lamentations
Draw a line at today. Your new lifelong love life, your new love affair with each other, the greatest marriage you can imagine, begins now. Today. From this day forward. Right now, in this very moment, you can commit that everything that happens from now on will represent your sacred commitment to your spouse before a holy God.
“From this day forward.”
A lot of people seem to ignore the fact that it’s a commitment you make before God. It’s easy to excuse our own behavior — our mistakes and bad habits — when we compare our shortcomings with our spouse’s. But for those of us who call ourselves Christians, that’s not really our standard, is it?
We say, “I take you for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, I will be faithful to you for as long as we both shall live, so help me, God.”
Instead, we need to think of it as a request to the only one who can save us: “I’m deciding to do all of these things, and I really, really mean it. So please! Help me, God!”
When we think of it in this way, we allow God to take his rightful place in our relationships. We acknowledge our weaknesses, admitting that we know it’s impossible for us to keep our commitments unless we choose to honor him at the very center of our marriage.
And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
). Our commitment to each other is mirrored in our holy covenant before him.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (pp. 17-18). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Our commitment to each other is mirrored in our covenant before him.
AS LONG AS YOU BOTH SHALL LIVE
“I promise to be faithful to my spouse as long as we both shall live, so help me, God.”
I need God in order to love another person unconditionally. I need his help to overlook offenses. I need his help to guard myself against all the temptations that lurk around every corner. I need his help to become more like Christ so I can lay down my life for my spouse.
Without him, our marriage wouldn’t be anything special. Odds are it would end badly, just like so many do. But by making him our One, he makes us one. And no one can un-one what God makes one. You can have the marriage God wants you to have.
The same can be true for you. You can have the marriage God wants you to have.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 169). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
But you can’t have it without God’s help. No matter what’s happened in your past, this is a new day. A new chance. A new beginning. From this day forward, things can be different. From this day forward, you can find healing. From this day forward, you can be more intimate. From this day forward, you can truly forgive as you’ve been forgiven. From this day forward, you can become closer to your spouse than you’ve ever been before.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 170). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Just remember: the past is the past. You can’t change it. But God can change your future. He can take what the enemy meant for evil and use it for good. What could have destroyed your marriage, God can use to make you stronger, closer, and give you an unbreakable bond. It might feel like you have too much to overcome. You don’t. It might seem like the damage is too great to be repaired. It’s not. You might not think you have what it takes. You don’t. But God does. Don’t let this be complicated. It doesn’t have to be. Keep your marriage simple, focused, and Christ-centered.
Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
No matter what’s happened before, you will seek the One with your two. He is your source. Your strength. Your sustainer. You don’t fight for victory; you fight from the victory God has given you. Together you will find resolution. And your differences won’t divide you; they’ll strengthen you.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 170). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (pp. 170-171). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
And because God never gave up on you, you will never give up on him or on your marriage.
Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 17). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 171). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 16). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
From this day forward.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (pp. 16-17). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Groeschel, Craig. From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage (p. 171). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.