Faithfulness in marriage

Read Proverbs 15

Proverbs 5:15
Drink water from your own cistern,
running water from your own well.

A cistern is a large vessel which is used to hold a reserve of water for household needs.

The theme of faithfulness in a marriage is peppered throughout the book of Proverbs. For Solomon, known for his consortium of many foreign wives as much as his wisdom, it is kind of bitter-sweet advice. Biblical history shows that Solomon was led astray in his faith by his many vies.

God detests marital infidelity for it is a breaking of a covenant between man and wife.

In modern society, it is not unusual for married people to flirt around without feeling guilty. However, this is not to be so for the Christians. What is harmless is a slippery slope toward adultery. Many marriages are wrecked not because the spouse deliberately sets out to have an affair. It is the unconscious, unguarded care one displays toward another person of the opposite sex which later develops into a tangled relationship.

There is something to be said of a relationship that has been given time to grow, bloom and weather the passing of time. It is rich trust with an abiding appreciation for the other party. It may be devoid of the ‘high’ feeling (which does not last anyway) but it is a reliable assurance that our special someone will stick to us through the end.
In the end, your spouse becomes your friend, confidant, lover and wife/husband all rolled-into-one. He or she is to be treasured because he/she has seen the best of you and the worst of you and still chooses to stay with you.

Does he/she meet all your needs? No. But so will not another new woman/man. Yet the spouse that walked with you down the aisle and promised you ‘till death do us part” is sufficient and enough for you – he is the best incomplete fit for an incomplete you.

I speak so as one who has been married for near 19 years.