Experience Can Be A Great Teacher

"He who walks with wise men will be wise." Proverbs 13:20

Dana would tell the boys when he would be giving them advice that he wasn't speaking from a place of intelligence, but a place of experience.

Experience can go a long way in a marriage, especially when that marriage has many years behind it. Dana and I still talk about the Christian couples we had over the years and how important they were in helping us navigate the avenues of marriage.

"Is not wisdom found among the aged? Does not long life bring understanding?"

(Job 12:12)

God's wisdom often comes from those who have traveled the path before us. For this reason we shouldn't take Christian marriage mentors for granted. Even when life with your spouse may seem blissful and carefree there is always room for improvement. We have to keep our marriage fitness intact; a check-up of sorts.

In the early days Dana and I could be frolicking along in the fields of green thinking that everything is as it should be when all of a sudden we would trip over a clump of dirt and fall right on our faces. Just because we feel we have good communication and we're on the same page with our finances, and we agree on how to discipline the boys, and we've gone two whole days without a tense word doesn't mean we shouldn't reach out and gain some wisdom from those who have been in those same fields before and tripped over those same dirt clods.

There is so much to gain from watching mentors live their lives in front of you. Now I'm not saying they are perfect and have a perfect marriage, but they have lived a life of ups and downs and learned how to navigate through them to come out hand in hand.

I heard someone say before that marriage is a wonderful mystery with a unique, holy calling. We can live out our marriage in such a way that it will show others what God is like. What better way to show the love of Christ to each other, your children, and to the world, than giving all we have to our spouse in an act of loving and serving each other.

Mentors can have a positive impact on your marriage, it did mine and Dana's. You can gain a positive, growing and spiritually intimate marriage when you take time to notice those godly couples that love and respect one another. Our marriage should have evidence of Christ's hand on it and it should glorify God and exalt His name.

"Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together." (Ps. 34:3)

I love you & He loves you more!

Dear Lord, Bless our marriages. Show us the areas we need to put forth more effort and help us look for godly marriages that we can gain wisdom from. Thank You for the marriage relationship, it is truly a gift and one not to be taken for granted. In Jesus' name. Amen.