Give Honor to Marriage

“Jesus answered, Haven’t you read the scripture that says that in the beginning the Creator made people male and female? And God said, for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and unite with his wife, and the two will become one. So they are no longer two, but one. Man must not separate, then, what God has joined together.” -Matthew 19:4-6

The above verse is very ideal for married couples. However, these days many couples are facing problems and temptations that lead to the dysfunction of their married life. That is why others opted to end their marriage through divorce, annulment and legal separation. Thus, leading to broken homes where children are the most affected one. I, for one is a product of such arrangement. My parents legally separated when I was in high school. My younger sister and I (there are only two of us kids in the family) choose to live with our mother. She basically cared and the one who provided for our needs. Our father on the other hand, gave financial support irregularly for the reason that he has another family to support. However, he visited us every now and then just to check us out if we’re okay. With that I appreciated my father’s effort and still respected him.

That was our family set up till we siblings graduated from college (both of us are working students). With my mother being the disciplinarian, we were guided in the right path. Thus, if not for our mother we would not be able to fulfill our dreams of finishing school and having a good job now. We are grateful to her for all the things she has done for us. And through the Lord’s providence we survived in being a part of a broken family.

Eventually, my sister and I were blest to have a family of our own; a family that learned its lesson from the experiences of our past. As for me, I’m glad to say that my husband and I had a blissful 13 years of married life despite the trials that we encountered. I am so blessed to have a loving husband that was understanding and patient. Sad to say he passed away last 2011 due to health problems.

Now, as a single parent, It is my prayer that I would be able to guide my children and be supportive of them if ever they chose the vocation of married life. May they look up the example of the Holy Family that of St. Joseph, Mama Mary and Jesus and be reminded on what the scripture says on Hebrews 13:4 “Give honor to marriage and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery.” For those who are already married may you find wisdom on these insights from Richard Exley from his book Straight from the Heart for Couples that says “Marriage is what you make it. Under God, it must be the most important relationship in all your life. If your marriage is good, you can overcome anything – financial adversity, illness, rejection, anything. If it is not good, there is not enough success in the world to fill the void. Remember, nothing, absolutely nothing, is more important than your marriage, so work at it with love and thoughtfulness all the days of your life.” (Bing Orbeta-Robles)