Marriage - What is it's Purpose?

This is a question that I think many husbands and wives ask themselves alot. I think this is a healthy question that you should always ask yourself. Another way of phrasing the question, as stated in Tyler Perry's blockbuster hit, "Why Did I Get Married?". Asking yourself this question gives you the opportunity to gauge your marriage...allows you to reevaluate your marriage...take the pulse of your marriage. Whenever I ask myself this question, I normally get some of the same answers everytime...companionship, love for the person, the want and desire to have a family (to be fruitful and multiply).

I feel the main purpose of marriage is for companionship. In the beginning, God stated that man should not be alone, and he create woman so that the man could have a companion. I know you might think sometimes that you could be better off being single (women say "I can do bad by myself") ...especially if you are a newlywed. But you must ask yourself, how would things be better if my spouse were not in my life? For me, I would be miserable...and I still consider myself a newlywed (+3 years of marriage). Whenever I have to travel out of town on business, I can't tell you the number of nights I sit in the hotel room wanting to be lying with my wife. Oh, and don't let her go out of town...I am at home wondering when is my baby coming back home. Even though we have two children to keep us occupied when the other is away, there is nothing like having my companion by my side.

I feel another key purpose of marriage is for the expression of love. I know you may be saying that you can love anyone or anything. This is true. You can love a lot of people and things...your parents, your children, a dog, a cat, a car, a house, or whatever else you choose to love. However, you cannot express the type of love that is meant for a spouse with any of the people or items mentioned above. In other words, you cannot be intimate with any of them...or at least I hope you aren't :) To me there is no greater feeling than being able to be intimate with my wife. While everything in a marriage may not be perfect, it is enjoyable. To me, marriage is a blessing that God gives my wife and I to enjoy each other, to express our love to each other in many ways specific only to the two of us (another future topic for discussion will be Love Languages).

All in all, I feel that the purpose of marriage is to bring happiness into two people's lives. As the Biblical scripture states "The man who finds a wife finds a treasure and receives favor from the Lord" -Proverbs 18:22. Marriage is a treasure hunt with your spouse being the treasure. Even though your treasure is sitting directly in front of you, you can only see or may have only been exposed to a small portion of your treasure. There is an enormous amount of treasure and riches waiting to be found within your spouse. You have to continue to look and search for those hidden treasures within your spouse. And each time you find a hidden treasure within your spouse, or even within yourself or your marriage, you will be amazed and your marriage will continue to grow. The thing I like about it, I anticipate that this treasure hunt in marriage will last forever...therefore causing neverending growth and love with your spouse...and for me, with my wife.

Be blessed and talk to you later.