From Focus on the Family by Ted Cunningham
Where you are and what you do are simply factors in the equation, but they are not the summation of a good time. Stop looking for fun in your marriage and start creating it!
My wife, Amy, is a foodie. I am not. Her favorite restaurants serve small portions and many courses. I prefer large portions served all at once. You would think these differences might drive us crazy, but they don’t. We decided a long time ago to find fun in every nook and cranny of our marriage.
Our foodie differences first surfaced at a fancy restaurant in a big city. When we walked in, I knew immediately that I would leave hungry. It was the type of restaurant our friend Dr. Kevin Leman calls a “four forker.”
The friendly host seated us at a table near the front window. We had a welcoming view of the garden terrace and plenty of privacy. It was a cute, cozy and romantic environment.
Then the waiter approached our table with a thick wooden plank that presented us with two mint leaves. My immediate question was, “Is that the salad?” He assured me it was not.
He invited us to each take a leaf and rub it over our lips, under our noses and around our chins. Amy was all in, but I hesitated.
“I grew up in Illinois where we grew produce, but we never rubbed it on our faces,” I said in jest. Our waiter didn’t laugh. Come on, shouldn’t rubbing herbs on your face be something a couple does in private? This was certainly one of the most awkward moments I have ever experienced in a restaurant.
The waiter stood waiting, so I gave him a show he would not soon forget. I took a bath with that mint leaf, and then discarded the wilted leaf on the plank. He took our order and left.
Amy giggled with appreciation. She knows how awkward those situations can be for me, but she loves how I push myself and work through the awkwardness. No matter where we are, no matter what we are doing, we try to make it fun.
Marriage should be enjoyed. Ecclesiastes 9:9 says, “Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun.” God declares that you can enjoy life with your spouse, even through the pain and challenges that life often brings. God did not give you your spouse to be the grind; He gave you your spouse to be a companion through the grind.
Here are a few ways that you can find fun and marital satisfaction in the random moments of life...
My wife, Amy, is a foodie. I am not. Her favorite restaurants serve small portions and many courses. I prefer large portions served all at once. You would think these differences might drive us crazy, but they don’t. We decided a long time ago to find fun in every nook and cranny of our marriage.
Our foodie differences first surfaced at a fancy restaurant in a big city. When we walked in, I knew immediately that I would leave hungry. It was the type of restaurant our friend Dr. Kevin Leman calls a “four forker.”
The friendly host seated us at a table near the front window. We had a welcoming view of the garden terrace and plenty of privacy. It was a cute, cozy and romantic environment.
Then the waiter approached our table with a thick wooden plank that presented us with two mint leaves. My immediate question was, “Is that the salad?” He assured me it was not.
He invited us to each take a leaf and rub it over our lips, under our noses and around our chins. Amy was all in, but I hesitated.
“I grew up in Illinois where we grew produce, but we never rubbed it on our faces,” I said in jest. Our waiter didn’t laugh. Come on, shouldn’t rubbing herbs on your face be something a couple does in private? This was certainly one of the most awkward moments I have ever experienced in a restaurant.
The waiter stood waiting, so I gave him a show he would not soon forget. I took a bath with that mint leaf, and then discarded the wilted leaf on the plank. He took our order and left.
Amy giggled with appreciation. She knows how awkward those situations can be for me, but she loves how I push myself and work through the awkwardness. No matter where we are, no matter what we are doing, we try to make it fun.
Marriage should be enjoyed. Ecclesiastes 9:9 says, “Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun.” God declares that you can enjoy life with your spouse, even through the pain and challenges that life often brings. God did not give you your spouse to be the grind; He gave you your spouse to be a companion through the grind.
Here are a few ways that you can find fun and marital satisfaction in the random moments of life...