The Covenant of Marriage

     The more that I observe marriages and the struggles couples are having, the more convinced I am that the heart of the problem is the attitude most people have when they enter into marriage.  Missing in most couples is the concept of marriage being a covenant relationship.  When a couple is married in a church or in a setting where a minister of the Gospel officiates, the ceremony is more than a legal ceremony to make the union where a man and woman can live together in an acceptable way in society.  It is a spiritual ceremony as well where commitments are made before God and man to live in the marital state until death separates then.
      While more and more couples are opting out of the marriage ceremony, or are by-passing the involvement of the church, there still is great value in taking vows made before God and man seriously.  If a couple is not committed to keeping their vows when they are spoken, then they need to rethink getting married. 
       There needs to be much greater importance put on marriage as a sacred institution than is generally done.  Pastors would do a couple much greater service if they were to stress the covenant aspect of a marriage while helping a couple prepare for marriage.  And they would do the people under their care a huge favor if they were to reinforce the covenant aspect of marriage on a regular basis in their ministries.
        The problem with marriage will continue to grow until we get back to the basics and see marriage as God sees it.  We have to stop looking through the lens of our culture and starting looking through the lens of God's Word if we are going to stem the tide of struggling marriages and divorces.
         No marriage is beyond help if a couple starts it off right and seeks help before it is too late.