Yesterday, my sweet parents celebrated 25 wonderful years of marriage!! I admire their faith, consistency, selflessness, and unconditional love that makes their marriage so strong.  I thought it would be fun to interview them separately and see what their top 5 tips were to a marvelous marriage!

…………….

Hers

1. Don’t be easily offended.

The less offended you are the more peace you live in, the more peace you live in the happier and more comfortable your home is. Psalm 119:165 says, “Great peace have they which love thy law and nothing shall offend them.” Fixing my thinking before it moves to becoming offended alleviates lots of problems. Remember, you’re a team!

2. Remind each other of things to look forward to. 

Use your creativity to make even regular days fun!  Recognize opportunities to be playful and spontaneous with everyday life situations.

3. Be best friends.

He rejoices with me in victories and consoles me in conflicts. Best friends listen well. The most important relationship you have on this earth is the one with your spouse – guard it, protect it, encourage it, and admonish it (don’t sweep things under the rug, be willing to be open and honest).

4. Laugh.

Break the seriousness by laughing at yourself and each other. “A merry heart does good like a medicine.” Proverbs 17:22

5. Be affectionate. 

No need to elaborate here.

His

1. Be quick to forgive.

*(I’ve never seen my parents go to bed upset at each other. My dad always made it a point to reconcile any conflict before bed and would point back to Ephesians 4:26 that says, “Do not let the sun go down on your anger.” This has stuck with me and I hope to implement it one day in my own marriage!)*

2. Try to always have something fun to look forward to.

3. Learn to be best friends.

4. Stay out of credit card debt.

5. Surround yourself with like-minded couples. 

…………….

I’m laughing because the first three are basically the same and I interviewed them individually! Guess that’s what happens when you’re married for 25 YEARS! I also think it’s quite amusing that I didn’t have to ask my mom to “expound” on her tips, she just did it. However, when I asked my dad to elaborate on his points he kept them short and sweet. Love that practical guy.

I’m so thankful the Lord blessed me with these two cuties who are still crazy about each other after all these years!

Happy Anniversary, Mom & Dad! Here’s to 25 more!

bloom & grow forever,

Madeline Rose