Livin' On Love
To sum up, each one of you is to love his wife as himself, and the wife is to respect her husband. Ephesians 5:33 CSB
Jeff Bezos (founder of Amazon) is getting married this weekend to Lauren Sanchez. The price tag for their wedding is a whopping $64 to $76 million!! Bezos, who's a billionaire, can easily afford it, but this got me to thinking.
It's not the investment in a wedding ceremony that makes the difference in a marriage. It's the investment AFTER the ceremony! In fact, one study conducted by Emory University showed that the more you spend on a ceremony, the higher the chance of divorce. The article that referenced the study summarized it by saying: “Couples who spent less than $1,000 on their weddings were most likely to have the strongest marriages, as they had the lowest divorce rate of all other couples.”
It's not a fancy ceremony that leads to a strong marriage; it's the day-by-day nurturing of the relationship. Showing genuine love, dying to self, and esteeming your spouse above yourself will pay huge dividends in strengthening the bonds of holy matrimony. Add Christ to this equation, and you have a recipe for a long, satisfying marriage.
It looks like Alan Jackson was right when he sang these words: “Two young people, without a thing, Say some vows, and spread their wings, And settle down with just what they need, Livin' on love.”
That's better than a million-dollar wedding, any day!
Dear Father in Heaven, Thank You for the gift of marriage. Our world tells us many things that are untrue about how to have a happy home, so please help us to listen to Your voice, and build our home on You. Help us today, and every day, to honor our marriage vows and to love and serve our spouse. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-wedding-venice-italy-cost-protest/
https://www.kittenplanlaw.com/blog/new-study-shows-link-between-lavish-wedding-and-divorce/