Marriage Models

Marital love goes through periods of change just like the seasons. Some are warm like summer; some are cold and difficult like a Minnesota winter; some are colorful and changing like a New England autumn; some are fresh and promising like a budding spring. What every married couple needs to learn is how to hang in there as the seasons change.
Marriage takes time and work. When love grows cool and the marriage is threatened is precisely when we must redouble our efforts to rekindle the fire at the hearth of commitment. Like most things worth knowing, lasting love must be learned.
In pre-marital counseling I tell couples to closely observe the marriages of others. Take note of the way he treats her. Listen to the way she speaks to him. Do they touch each other? Is there a warmth and kindness between them? We learn to love by finding teachers who are good lovers. Look for couples who model an enduring love. Get to know them and ask how they faced the struggles of life. Find godly men and women who have depended upon Jesus Christ, who have made prayer the routine of their marriage and learn from them.
We are all significantly and powerfully influenced by systematic exposure to good marriages where people are continually growing in love. We need to chose our models well!
Related Scripture: I Corinthians 13: 4-7