KNOWING THE WILL OF GOD IN MARRIAGE

Knowing the will of God in marriage is undoubtedly a hard nut for many prospective spouses to crack today. The reason is not far-fetched. Some don't pray for God's perfect will while others don't pray at all. They simply size up their intending spouses and hastily make up their minds to marry them. This largely accounts for the unprecedented manner in which marriages are breaking up these days. Most people get married today not because they love their partners but because of their wealth, popularity or connections. 

No wonder such spouses pack up their marriages the moment there is financial squeeze. Marriages contracted on the basis of love and which receive the approval of Heaven can hardly break up no matter the storm raging against them. It is for this reason that believers who want to get married are often advised to seek the face of the Lord very seriously before making up their minds on who to marry. 

There was this story of a top journalist in Kwara State whose wife allegedly packed out of her matrimonial home on account of his husband's sack. Other examples abound of spouses who have divorced their partners as a result of one problem or the other. Obviously, love cannot be said to be the foundation of such marriages because in 1 Corinthians 13:7, the Bible says, 'Charity (love) beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things'. From this verse of the Scriptures, it is very clear that no matter what challenges any marriage might be facing, love will make the spouses to endure all things, thus ensuring that the vow of 'for better or for worse' is not broken. 

But what determines the success or otherwise of any marriage is whether or not God is involved in it. How do you involve God in your marriage? It is by praying that the will of God be done in one's marriage. That is, you specifically pray for the bone of your bones and the flesh of your flesh. Mind you, when you are praying for a spouse, you don't pray amiss and you must not have an idol in your heart. The idol here means the woman you have already decided to marry before seeking the face of the Lord. At the Bible College, we were told that once you are a disciple of the Lord, you are yoked together with the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ; meaning that you no longer have a mind of your own. The will of God becomes your will and His desires become your desires, which means if you want to marry, what you ask the Lord to give you is the man or woman He desires for you and not the one you desire for yourself, if your marriage is to stand the test of time. 

When I was to marry, I prayed and I was led to a particular lady. When I told the wife of a relation about it, she advised me against marrying the lady and that there was a very rich woman at Egbe, a Lagos suburb, who was desperately looking for a husband. She even told me that the woman had a house of her own. She cajoled me to marry her, but I retorted that she was not the will of God for me. I was not looking for a rich woman to marry, but a perfect will of God. If I had married the woman, I don't know what would have either happened to me or the marriage. 

Most people today profess to be children of God, but they don't seek the will of God in all their endeavours. They just marry anybody they see without asking God to choose for them. The Bible says the blessing of God maketh rich and addeth no sorrow. When God chooses for you, you can be sure that the marriage will be devoid of sorrows. But in knowing the will of God in marriage, there is the need for you to pray fervently and fast so that you don't hear the voice of the Devil and think it is that of God and marry a familiar spirit. If you must know the will of God in marriage, you must not walk by sight. As a Christian, always learn to walk by faith. If you must enjoy your marriage, you must not marry on the basis of lust (sorry, love) at first sight. It is wrong as there is nothing like love at first sight. It is not possible for a man to love a woman at first sight. It is nothing but deception from the pit of hell.