DEAR WATCHER OF TIMES: IS CAN MY MARRIAgE BE TRULY HAPPY?

The story was told me of a young man who approached his aging father for his blessing as he was set to marry. The old man, wise in years, looked upon his son and said, “there are two things I would advise you son as you embark on this journey. One, as time goes by, your wife will increasingly ask you more money and also for more sex. Two, you will discover that as you strive to fulfill one, your capacity to do the other will diminish. If you choose to satisfy the demand for sex, you will not have time to make the money and if you set out to make more money, you will not have time for sex; yet both are vital to making the marriage happy and successful, so find the right balance”.

Intrigued by the poser set before him, the young man embarked on his journey and soon found the saying of his father to be true. With his marriage struggling to find the perfect balance between money and sex, he consulted his wise old father to find out how he had managed to keep his own marriage together for all these years, building a happy home in the process. The old man smiled as craftily as old men often do, and whispered in the eager ears of his much beloved son. “Whenever you have to meet any one of the demands, go the extra mile and do over and beyond whatever is asked for. When she wants money, I give her more than she needs and it earns me a respite from the other and vice versa” he said as he settled back to the comfort of his worn but faithful chair.

The Almighty God is the Lord of infinite balance. He created the universe to such perfection that every force can be counterbalanced by an equal and opposite force. He ensured that too much or too little of anything creates an imbalance that leaves man constantly seeking for answers and somewhat falling short of fulfillment. That required balance is most evidenced in marriage where a happy wife is a happy life. The old man, looking intently at his son expounded on his theory for a happy wife, “when you do more than is expected in the moment, it will buy you sufficient grace to stretch out and cover for the periods when you need to rest and recover your strength before you surely must act again.”

Do you go over and beyond what is expected of you in life?

May the Lord help us find the right balance in all we do today.