16 Ways to Avoid Marital Failure

A sermon by Alistair Begg

1. Do not be so foolish as to maintain it cannot happen to you. (1 Cor. 10:11)
2. Do not assume that a great marriage can be discovered and enjoyed without some solid hard work. (Prov. 24:30-34)
3. Do not allow the busyness of life to disguise neglect.
4. Do not make the mistake of taking each other for granted. (1 Pet. 3:7)
5. Do not dig up old failures or past disappointments. (Phil. 3:4; Ps. 103:3)
6. Do not compare your spouse unfavourably with others, in terms of looks, abilities, or anything else. (Prov. 5:15-19)
7. Do not take someone of the opposite sex into precincts that are the exclusive domain of your spouse. (i.e. If some lady from the office sees you have broad shoulders and wants to cry on them, tell her to go cry on someone else’s shoulders. Protect the sanctity of your marriage! Women minister to women, men minister to men. Period! )
8. Do not allow each other the kind of freedom that breeds neglect. (i.e. If you say you will call at a certain time, be sure to do so.)
9. Be daily in prayer for the health of your marriage and the harmony in your home.
10. Be sacrificial in your expression of your love for each other.
11. Be imaginative, daring, and occasionally extravagant in displaying your affection.
12. Be sure that you do not use your children as the glue that holds you or the wedge that separates you. (i.e. It is the children who will leave the home while the two of you will remain.)
13. Be ruthless in resisting anyone or anything that will draw your affections from each other.
14. Be ready to listen (women), and willing to speak (men), about what’s going on inside each other’s heads. (i.e. Do you know what your spouse is thinking about? What are your spouse’s fears, hopes, dreams?)
15. Be certain that a great marriage is possible with divine enabling and human effort. (Eph. 3:20)
16. Be aware of how quickly time is passing, and seize the day. (i.e. You have each other for a short period of time, so make the best use of the time.)