Faith Filled Family Magazine August 2016 | Page 57

the Christian (1 Corinthians
7:13-16). Peace must kept by
the Christian by letting them
stay or letting them go.
Divorce may have a justifiable
reason according to the Bible.
Jesus gave adultery as a
valid reason for divorce (Matthew 5:32, Matthew19:9). If a
wife wants to leave her husband because he was having
an affair, she is fully justified
to leave the marriage, and
vice versa. Reconciliation
after adultery is very difficult
because trust has been damaged to the very core of the
relationship. Restoring the
marriage can and has been
done, but most successfully
with the help of qualified professionals.
Both the husband and the
wife usually contribute to the
demise of the marriage once
the D-word is first uttered.
Gradual erosion begins with
the lack of consideration for

each other, then progresses
to derogatory remarks. Hot
tempers flare while insults
act as gasoline on the fire.
Couples have mentally entertained divorce by this point,
either by one or both of them.
Suddenly, “I want a divorce!”
spews out like searing lava.
No one wants to admit it, but
the husband and the wife
have said or done things they
regret. Now they feel it is too
late because the damage is
too extensive. Jesus may
have been the center of the
marriage at the beginning,
but it looks like He’s been displaced now (Ephesians 5:21).
Unfortunately, most couples
who seek help from a counselor do it as a last ditch effort
to salvage their marriages.
Counseling
works
better

before the
word divorce
rolls off their
tongues. Couples who seek
help early to learn how to
manage conflict are more
likely to try to restore the
relationship.
One young
couple just starting out felt
great they were able to
afford a home of their own.
Both worked full-time jobs.
During an economic downturn, Steve’s * company
made major cuts. After he
lost his job, he struggled to
find another even though he
filled out scores of applications and sent out several
of his resumes. They were
forced to move in with parents. Amber* was frustrated
with him because she considered their situation his