Enduring Marriage By Pete BriscoeSample

Fight For, Not With

The moment we decide to throw more energy into fighting for our mate than with him, the crack of a fist on the enemy's jaw splits the ears of angels. —Beth Moore

If you’re stuck in a miserable marriage, then that no-out clause—till death do us part—is looming large before you, right? And since we’ve already covered Jesus’ view on the permanence of marriage, it seems you have two options:

• You can live in this miserable marriage until one of you dies, or
• You can pray Jesus does a miracle, love breaks out, and you find you’re in a great marriage.

I know what you’re thinking. Yeah, Pete, but you don’t understand my messy marriage. We are two people living separate lives under the same roof. I don’t even like to go home after work.

Can Jesus really work with that? Yes, He can if you’re willing to participate. It’s not going to be easy, but you’ve got His Spirit alive in you. He’s more than enough.

Since we know Jesus is in the business of taking dead things and breathing life back into them, we just need a place to start. I recommend you start by learning some basic protection skills.

[Love] always protects. (1 Corinthians 13:7)

The word protect comes from the root word for “roof” or “covering." The idea is that it protects us. It’s a shelter—a home. If an intruder enters your home, you defend it, right? The golf club under your bed becomes your weapon of choice to protect what is valuable.

That said, chances are good that one very dangerous intruder is stealing your marriage. It’s the idea that you don’t have to stick it out. You can leave.

Rather than surrender to that thought, I challenge you to surrender to Jesus’ power to resurrect. Both of you sit down, admit the marriage is miserable, and invite Jesus to do something miraculous.

It’s possible. I’ve seen it dozens of times.

So what’s your choice?

Healer, it’s not easy to choose to stay. Lead me into a community of friends and family that will live life with us—in good times and bad. I pray we will be a place of support and refuge for each other, so none of our marriages fall victim to the dangerous idea that we can quit. Amen.