I found an amusing article on a country music blog about divorce (not to say there is anything remotely fun about divorce), but this boot-scooting boogey website did a poll and asked their readers to send in their best tips to divorce proof a marriage.
Here are the tips they gave to unmarried’s…
* Don’t have a baby out-of-wedlock
* Finish high school
* Don’t marry until your 20s
* Know your partner for at least a year
* Don’t live with too many partners outside of marriage
* Get a decent job
While these are relevant suggestions, I think they forget a few biggies.
Research proves the single most effective element in preventing divorce in a marriage is PRAYER and strangely enough I don’t even see it on the list.
Couples who attend church and pray together have a much lower divorce rate then the current 51% divorce rate.
The University of Virginia’s Brad Wilcox found that church attendance on a regular basis reduces the likelihood of divorce by 30 percent to 35 percent. Wilcox’s research supports another study by Annette Mahoney of Bowling Green State University, which independently came to a similar conclusion.
But it’s not just going to church, when you insert prayer along with a lifestyle of faith, thoughts of divorce tumble.
A 1998 survey by the Georgia Family Council discovered that in marriages where couples prayed together weekly, only 7 percent had seriously considered divorce, compared to 65 percent of those who did not pray together.
So, maybe not having a kid outside of wedlock is a good idea and a great job never hurts, but when the cards are down and the struggles of marriage emerge, it’s the couples who get on their knees and cry out to God who tend to make it.
Do you have any tips to avoiding divorce?
Sources: Focus on the Family
I think this begins when you are dating. My suggestion is to begin praying together while you are dating. Do not wait for marriage. Listen to God about whether or not this is the person he has chosen for you. After you are married, support your marriage by praying for your spouse and marriage. Also, ask God to help you think of your partner before making decisions that impact your marriage and life. Communicate with your partner. Communication includes listening.
I love this. Tim and I prayed every night while we dated, often on the phone. Sometimes we fell asleep, but we always connected to God and each other.