"Marriage: A Bed of Roses"
- Rita Larson
- Sep 26, 2023
- 3 min read
I traveled extensively with work and experienced some unexpected health challenges these past few years, and as a result, I haven't tended to my rose garden like I needed to. Noticing that it looked pretty scraggly, I decided I needed to really trim my roses back, spray them with a fungicide, and give them some fertilizer. After taking time to invest in them, they are already beginning to sprout new healthy leaves and I am sure, will have fresh new buds on them in no time!
When it comes to marriage, it’s easy to think that it will just take care of itself. We live in a world where things are instantaneous, and our needs are met with the push of a button. Yet, when it comes to marriage, it’s not something that can be achieved in an instant. It is not always a bed of roses, but takes hard work and dedication, just like tending to a beautiful rose garden. Sometimes we have to get rid of some weeds and grab the fertilizer to make sure we maintain a healthy marriage.
In 1 Corinthians 7:3-5, it says, “Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise, also the wife unto the husband. The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife. Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.” We need to be intentional and include God in our marriages. It takes work and dedication to keep it strong and healthy.
Ephesians 5:22-33 that marriage is an example of the relationship between Christ and the Church. “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it…” Just as Christ loves the Church and gave himself to it, husbands should love their wives. Likewise, just as the church is subject unto Christ, wives are to submit to their husbands, trusting that their husbands are their nurturers and protector, wanting only what is best for them.
Finally, Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 gives us a beautiful reminder that marriage is a special and sacred thing. It says, “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up. Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone? And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” This scripture tells us that marriage is something that requires two people, who in unity, work together to love and support one another. When we come together in marriage, we are stronger than when we are alone. The threefold cord represents the significance of having God intertwined in marriage, adds strength. When both spouses have their eyes on God, making their relationship with God a priority, the marriage will grow and flourish.
Marriage is a beautiful thing, and it takes work and dedication to make it flourish like a rose. Just like a rose garden, marriage requires tending to and fertilizing in order to remain strong and healthy. It’s important to prioritize our marriage and to remember that, with God’s help, we can make it beautiful and fragrant, like a rose. ©Rita Larson 9/26/2023
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