Recently I have had conversations with 2-3 couples who marriages are really struggling. This is nothing new since people often come to Church or want to talk to the Pastor when they are having problems. In fact, one of the main things I have tried to emphasize in my ministry the last 5 years is help for married couples. That has lead us to have a video conference here at Homer Christian Church and this year it has lead us to join with the other local Churches to bring in Gary Chapman for a one day conference in March.

Well, last week I was talking to a Church member and I asked him about his marriage and if he was going to this conference. He responded that everything was going great right now and that he and his wife would not be attending the conference. I was a little surprised and told him it was a great opportunity here in Homer for a little encouragement in his marriage. I asked him to pray about it and let me know if he changed his mind.

Later that afternoon I was driving home and recalling my day when a thought hit me. Maintaining a healthy marriage is like maintaining a functioning vehicle.

With my car, I need to regularly be changing my oil, checking my fluids, listening for squeaks and asking the mechanic to check out something like the brakes when I am getting my tires rotated and balanced. Why do I do that? Simply to keep my car running smooth so that I do not experience a big breakdown later on. A little bit of maintaining here and there will save a huge cost of a major repair.

I think the same is true with marriage. You need to be doing those regular daily things like talking, touching and opening up your heart. But you also need some regular maintenance. Maybe that means attending a conference once every other year about marriage. Maybe it means you read a book about marriage every so often. Maybe it means a regular date night or vacation week. Maybe you need to be a regular visitor to a counselor. I really don’t know what will help your marriage best. I do know your marriage might be fine now, but if you do not do any regular maintenance then there will be a big cost later on. Pay the price now or pay a big price later.