Commitment
Scripture Reading — 1 Corinthians 13
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.
Ephesians 5:25
I read in the news that Alonzo and Beulah Sims had celebrated their wedding anniversary in Alabama—their 81st! At the same time, I read that the divorce rate in the United States is approaching 50 percent, which means that one out of every two couples who marry will get a divorce.
I thought about my parents and grandparents. Their marriages were prearranged according to old Chinese traditions. They did not really know each other before they were married, but they lived happily and were never divorced. Divorce was much less acceptable in those days, but it seems couples in general were more committed to work out problems than some couples are today. Many people today are easily defeated in marriage, like students who drop out of high school when it seems too difficult.
In 1 Corinthians 13:4 we read that love is patient and kind, and Ephesians 5:21-25 exhorts husbands and wives to love and sacrifice for one another. I always remind myself that what I said to my wife on our wedding day is a commitment not to be taken lightly:
I take you to be my wedded wife. To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part. And I pledge you my faithfulness …
Father, remind us that “we love because [you] first loved us.” Help us who are married to be committed to our spouses, and encourage us when we struggle. In Jesus, Amen.
About the author — Jimmy Tai-On Lin
Rev. Jimmy Lin is the Chinese ministry leader of The Back to God Hour. With his staff in Palos Heights and Hong Kong, Rev. Lin has ministered to over 1.3 billion Chinese-speaking people around the world for 16 years through radio, literature, CD/DVD, Internet, and text message. His wife, Doris, is one of the translators of Today into the Chinese language, which now has a circulation of more than 45,000 copies.
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