I think that most people start their married
lives with the idea that the honeymoon phase is going to last forever. Spoiler
alert—it doesn’t always work that way. The good news is that there is a way to
make your marriage, if not perfect, then at least better than it will be without
putting in the work.
In his book Marriage that Works: God's
Way of Becoming Spiritual Soulmates, Best Friends, and Passionate Lovers (Baker
Books, 2019), Chip Ingram starts out with a few disclaimers. Things like the
fact that he’s not a professional marriage counselor, and although he serves as
a pastor, his family of origin was not ideal, and his marriage is far from
perfect. But he has managed to learn about marriage according to God looks
like, and he shares some of those lessons with his readers.
This book is not for someone looking
for the easy way out. In fact, a good marriage requires a lot of hard work on
the part of both husband and wife. Along the way Chip takes a look at some
commonly misunderstood scripture verses, and puts them in context. You know the ones I mean, the pesky verses in
Ephesians (4:22-23) that suggest that the man is the boss, and the woman is
supposed to be submissive and subservient.
Of course, if you read the whole passage (Eph 5:21-33) it becomes a lot
clearer, and when you use scripture to interpret scripture, God's plan is even
more fully revealed.
A marriage that works is not an
accident, it’s not a guarantee; it’s the result of living according to the plan
that God has laid out before us. Both husband and wife need to be willing to
make the effort.
Thinking about getting married? This
might be a good book to read ahead of time. Thinking about divorce? That’s not
part of God's plan, and this book might help you avoid it. Things not going quite
the way you had imagined them? Maybe some
time spent together in this book might help.
I received
a copy of this book from the publisher as a member of their blogger’s program.
I was not required to write a positive review.
5/5
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