Fortified Marriages
Fortified Marriages
Episode 10 - Part Two
Hello, and welcome to In the Lighthouse: your safe harbor from the storm brought to you by Carry the Light Ministries. I’m Daphne Collins, your Lighthouse Keeper and host for our time together. I was just sitting here thinking about the wonderful emotions we feel when we first fall in love, not to mention the anticipation and excitement leading up to that wedding day. Everyone wants those moments to last, but the truth is, once the bubble of wedded bliss bursts, and life settles back into normalcy, the true sustainability of the marriage is tested by the passage of time. Life and its many complications will inevitably put the couple to the test. Those couples who have been grounded with a biblical, Christ-centered foundation, are ensured the ability to withstand the storms. In Part Two of Fortified Marriages, Chris and Carmen Garner return to discuss several issues they learned about in their marriage through patience and hard work including things like their individual love languages, boundaries, and willingness to serve one another. If you’re in a marital relationship that is strained because of a lack of love and respect, I encourage you to listen to how Chris and Carmen weathered their storms and turned things around. We must never lose hope in the fact that marriage is a gift of God to humanity. Therefore, he is on your side. All you have to do is ask. Okay, let’s get started!
In his manual on How to Build and Maintain a Strong Marriage and Family, regarding An Ongoing Love Affair, Chris Garner comments, “When love begins between a man and woman, it doesn’t take much work. Everything seems to just happen. They very much want to be with each other . . . and do whatever they can for each other . . . Intimate relationships do not improve spontaneously, and troubled relationships do not get better on their own. Couples must choose to nourish their marriage relationship, love their spouse, and pursue romance with him or her.”
Two important areas in sustaining a healthy marital relationship include romance and communication, and understanding the language of romance can be subjective. According to our author, “men have a tendency to understand romance only as a means to initiate sex,” whereas women respond to romantic gestures on an emotional level, and will respond according to how they make her feel. The apostle Paul provided excellent biblical advice to the spouses that are first, Christ-centered so that they have an exemplar to follow – that is, Jesus Christ. In Ephesians 5, the text begins with Paul’s exhorting that we are to “walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.” His prescription of how Christians are to live in relation to the world should also extend into our relationships with one another. Ephesians 5:22-33 specifically speaks to the sacrificial love of a man and woman toward one another that embodies the agape love of Christ to the church. It is a mystery, as Paul describes, yet it is exactly as God designed the relationship to be. It runs countercultural to the world, thereby placing the marriage of man and woman in direct conflict with the plans of an enemy as old as the Garden of Eden.
Some parts of what you hear may not be suitable for younger audiences, so I caution adults and parents to use discretion with their young ones when listening to this episode.
Chris and Carmen Garner
Show Notes
Recommended Books:
Fortified Marriages: How to Build and Maintain a Strong Marriage & Family - Chris Garner
Victory Over Darkness - Neil T. Anderson
https://www.barna.com/research/new-marriage-and-divorce-statistics-released/
Opening Theme: Going For Gold
Transition Theme: Piano Background
Conclusion Theme: Love Piano by Synthezx
Transcript of “Fortified Marriages” - by Daphne Collins
Transcript of “The Final Script” - by Laine Wilder
