We live in a world where marriage is no longer considered sacred.  People marry and divorce all the time.  It is not uncommon for someone to be on their 2^nd or 3^rd marriage.  I met a lady at the DMV who proudly told me that she was on her 5^th marriage.  I was saddened by how proudly and quickly she told me and then laughed it off.  While I agree that there are situations where divorce is necessary, I think that this is a minority of cases instead of the majority.  Our culture has become very individualistic where the focus is on the achievement of the individual at the cost of all else.  It is all about self-fulfillment and instant gratification.  People think that if they are no longer happy or feeling fulfilled, then it must be time to end the marriage.  People need to better understand what it takes to make a marriage work.  Marriage is hard and it requires work, sacrifice, and commitment.

I think what makes me see marriage as sacred is that I believe marriage is a covenant that a man and a woman make with God.  Marriage is not easy and it gives me comfort to know that I can turn to God for help and that he will be there to help both my husband and I succeed.  God wants us to succeed!  It also means that my husband and I put God first in our lives.  We pray together, we pray for each other, we study the scriptures, we go to church, and we strive to keep the commandments.  As we do this, we draw closer to God and closer to each other.

I remember my brother sharing some advice he received from a marriage counselor.  The counselor asked him what percentage of effort he gave at work, he said 100%.  The counselor asked him what percentage he gave to his workout routine, he said 100%.  The counselor asked what percentage he gave to his children, he said 100%.  The counselor then asked why do you think it is okay to only give 50% to your marriage.  Marriage is not 50/50 divided with the other person.  Marriage requires both people to give 100%.  As we give 100% to our marriage, we will have happier and healthier marriages.