Marriage is Not 50/50

I remember our wedding day like it was yesterday! It was incredibly special! All of my family and Seth’s family worked so hard to hang a million and one icicle lights and tulle so that the church reception hall would look magical instead of like a church fellowship hall. We so appreciate all of the organization that everyone did down to the tiniest detail so that we would not be stressed. Apparently, there was a cake mishap, but I had no idea because I was soaking up all the joys of it being our wedding day. We even had the honor of having Seth’s dad and my father-in-law marry us.

I’ll be honest, I don’t remember all the things my father-in-law said in the ceremony (I was waiting for the “I now pronounce you husband and wife” line), but I do remember one particular thing he told us, “Marriage is not 50/50, it’s 100/100.” Seth and I both looked at each other like those percentages don’t add up.

It wasn’t clear to us then (we were young and naive), but over the years, and witnessing our parents’ marriages and other great examples of marriage, we have learned that marriage really isn’t 50/50, it’s 100/100. Every day you must choose to give your marriage 100%.

If marriage was 50/50, then it would be a constant balancing game. Who gave more to the marriage that day? You both would be measuring whether your spouse was putting forth their 50%. It would cause unnecessary fights and bickering that you put in 55% today and they only put in 45%.

God has designed different roles for husbands and wives. The last two weeks we have talked about how God designed marriage and the roles he designed for husbands and wives. A husband’s role is to be the leader of the home, lead with respect, and cherish his wife. Whereas, a wife’s role is to submit to her husband and help him have the opportunity to be the leader. Since God has given husbands and wives unique roles in a marriage, how can we not give 100% to our marriage daily? If we don’t give 100% to our respective roles then who will?

Next week, I will share of my husband’s and my favorite things to do together.