From a letter by Walter to Grace Fellowship Church....
“...Agree to never talk about some things. Really, only one thing comes to my mind... and that is the D-word. Mrs. Walter and I have never discussed, even in jest, the idea of divorce. We never joke about it, threaten it, think about it or talk about it. We decided early on that death would be the only thing to separate us.
Now that does something to you! If you walk into a marriage with some ridiculous “escape clause,” you are inviting division! Old Charlie McIntyre used to talk so much about how everything was going to go wrong it almost always did... for him! If he’d of just kept at has task and worried about pleasing the Lord more than what troubles might beset him, he’d have lived a happier and no doubt longer life.
I read once of a sea captain who cut loose his own lifeboats so as to keep his men on board ship while they passed some tropical islands. Those sailors were tempted to sneak off to what looked like greener pastures when there was a way to get there. Once them lifeboats were gone, they were focused on the task and kept to their duties. A couple needs to take out the slightest thought of slinking off on a lifeboat to some supposed Tahiti. Some folks treat divorce like a lifeboat to happier shores. Cut it loose and get on with loving yours. Life will always be better if you stick together and grow in the Lord...”
You can read the whole letter here.
Old Walter seems to have hit the nail on the head! I love the sea captain analogy.
ReplyDeleteMy wife and I discussed the "D-word" very early on, but rejecting that hands down, decided that we both would rather go with the "C-word" (commitment, remember that?) with all our hearts. Since that moment, it hasn't all been "smooth sailing", but there is a depth and security that only commitment can bring. Now our marriage is a settled issue, and nearly 10 years later we still are a team working WITH each other to conquer our problems rather than adversaries working AGAINST each other. It feels like how it was meant to be.
I like that "C" word, Derifter!
ReplyDeleteImagine sticking together feeling like "it was meant to be!" How un-postmodern of you!
Praise the Lord!
Wow, thanks. Haven't read it yet, but saved it to read tomorrow. I'm preaching on Mark 10:1-12 this coming sunday, d.v. Jesus makes no bones about his 'theology of marriage' in this passage, which flows into a very hard-line on divorce. I need all the wisdom I can to 'rightly divide this word of truth'.
ReplyDeleteIan.
Sunday evening, listening to Walter's letter, I was at first confused about what the D-word was.
ReplyDeleteDieting?
Dominion theology?
Doritoes?
Oh, divorce! Yep, that is certainly a word we never use. Our wedding vows included:
...to preserve with you this bond, holy and unbroken, until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ or until God by death should separate us...
We never discuss breaking our promises! And we strive in God's strength!
Ian said, I need all the wisdom I can to 'rightly divide this word of truth'.
ReplyDeleteI've just said a quick prayer on your behalf, as you study this week to shed light on that passage.