The best marriage advice I ever got was given to me pretty early on in my marriage. It struck me as true and important, and I have tried to apply it to my marriage every day. This is it:
Don't expect your marriage to be 50/50. Instead of keeping track of what your spouse should be doing or what they "owe" you, resolve to give more. The key to being happy with your marriage is to decide to give 90% and expect 10% in return. Be the first to apologize. Be the one to love more, give more, and sacrifice more.
There are a couple of reasons why I think this advice is so important. #1 is that your view of giving 50% will never match up exactly with your spouse's view of giving 50%. If you're keeping score, you will always feel robbed. #2 is that love expands exponentially when you sacrifice and serve your spouse. Sometimes, apologizing when you don't feel like it can seem like the hardest thing in the world. It's not always "fair." But you'll find it is always right. When you put your spouse first, and sacrifice your pride, your anger, your hard work, or your time for them, your love for them will grow, and their love and appreciation for you will grow. This advice helped me a lot in the early years of our marriage. Is there any marriage advice that you've been given that has helped you? Or any advice from your own experience that you'd like to share with others? Make a comment and share your wisdom!
Cherene,
ReplyDeleteI love that advice!! What a great way of thinking about marriage.
I can't think of any earth shattering advice to share with the world. I do know that only the important things in life are worth all our effort - and my marriage is right up there on top
Oooooh that is a good one. Love it!
ReplyDeleteI got lots of advice from friends and family, but I remember what one roommate wrote on a card from my bridal shower. "Sometimes remember he is just a guy." It still makes me laugh to think about it -but it also helps me to be humble and reign in my expectations and love him for who he is.
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