I’ve been ruminating on last Sunday’s sermon (hence the title of this post). Two points come to mind that really got my attention.

First of all, seeing as how marriage is so vital to society, it’s interesting how most people will spend far more time planning on the wedding day to the neglect of preparing for a good marriage. The wedding, as beautiful as it is, takes all of an hour, while the marriage is supposed to last a lifetime.

I’m convinced that if you won’t mind having a less than stellar wedding if you have good marriage, and it won’t matter that you had the perfect wedding ceremony if your marriage turns out to be a bust. So yes, do plan for a beautiful wedding, but be sure to plan just as much for a good and godly marriage (which won’t happen by chance; you have to be intentional and proactive about it).

Also, the Bible calls husbands to love their wives with the agape kind of love. That love goes both ways. Here’s what that means.

It means that the husband loves his own wife regardless of whether she ever loves him back that way– or at all, whether she is grateful or not, whether she receives it or not. I’m not saying it’s easy. I am saying that’s the biblical standard.

To love your spouse like Christ loved the Church (also the biblical standard) isn’t easy. In fact, it’s humanly impossible to do on a consistent basis, day in and day out. That’s why Christ at the center is essential for any marriage to work.

I’m not married. I’m not even close at this point. But for me I know that if I want a godly wife, I HAVE to be intentional RIGHT NOW about developing a godly character. I can’t wait until my wedding night to start getting ready. I have to BE ready.