Forever After!!!!

     Now that we have talked about dating, let's move on to engagement and marriages. Now I’m not going to tell you when you should get engaged or get married. That is way above my pay grade but I am going to throw some thoughts out there for things that should be done during these two times in your life. For example, have you ever considered how your engagement period can help you to prepare for married life, and how much influence God should have in your marriage. 

After you finally have that beautiful ring, or woman life might seem to be at a standstill. You may find yourself wondering, what next? There is no simple solution to this question. One thing you should continue to do is regularly spend time together and still go on dates. Even though you already caught the perfect person, your relationship might start to wane if you never see each other or spend time together. It’s like coming home after a long semester of college and feeling like you don’t really fit in any more. People change. It’s as plain as that. Now, one of the next steps of life is to prepare for your wedding. I’m sure you have seen all of the typical stereotypes with bridezilla, or over planning, or really anything. The truth is planning a wedding is hard work. I have had 4 older siblings get married and 3 of them did it within a year and a week of each other. My poor parents were stuck planning wedding after wedding with very little time in between. I definitely didn’t see all the work put into the weddings but I remember some of it. Now think how much more stressful it will be when it is your wedding!!!! You’ve got to find a dress, tux, plan a reception, send out invitations and so much more! Now think how much more stressful this could be if it is just you doing all this work, not the two of you together. This is why it is super important to both plan the wedding. That way you are both involved in the future of your life, and you get practice making decisions together. I’m sure we’ve all seen people who when you ask them what they want they can’t make up their minds (ME). Well, that is very frustrating, and you don’t want a future of frustration. While all of this is going on, you should also have a basic outline of what you want your married life to look like.

Marriage isn't easy. You are merging two different backgrounds and cultures all into one itty bitty house. Maybe one of you really likes video games, but the other one doesn’t or one of you eats with your mouth open and the other one doesn’t. There are all sorts of things that you need to compromise on. One person can’t be right all the time and take all the things that make the other happy away. It is a practice of give and take. With video games you might compromise on only playing the video games after the homework is done and only for about 4-6 hours a week, while also being willing to give up something you do too much like maybe reading books. There are so many choices to make and it is most likely going to be easier on you if you tackle some of them before they come up and turn into an argument.

The last thing I wanted to mention is making sure  you keep God in your relationship. Building and keeping lasting relationships is really difficult. It is always easier when you have someone willing to be a mediator and help to encourage both of you to see the other side. That is what Heavenly Father can do for you. As you rely on him for strength and guidance he can give you patience and a clear perspective so you can understand your significant other in a different way.You also can make promises or covenants with God that help you both to stay on track and be strengthened during difficult times in your lives. As I said, marriage isn’t easy, but with God it can be easier! When you turn to him in prayer you can rest assured that even though life won't be easy, it will be easier without him!