by Samuel

Created on: July 27, 2009   Last Updated: July 28, 2009

Just as building a healthy body requires the right amount of food nutrients and exercise, building a healthy marriage requires same: the right attitude, planning, and actions.

Marriages fail for many reasons, most of which are unnecessary, and could have been avoided had the couples learnt how to prepare the right soil for a marriage to grow healthily.

Here are some key elements to help build a healthy marriage.

* Planning / Sharing Responsibilities

Planning is a vital key. It is true that expectations of marriages change over the years, but too many surprises and unforeseen changes can hurt a growing marriage. Everything has to be planned, from daily household chores to financial responsibilities.

Planning here, means sharing responsibilities. And because we are human beings, we shouldn't expect such responsibilities to be done perfectly all the time. When one party starts experiencing challenges, the other party can give a helping hand: this is one of the reasons for marriage.

* Love

Love always makes the list, but the love here, goes far beyond mere feelings. The love that works in marriages is what may be termed decisive love. This is the love that still shows love when the feeling is not there. It is a love that comes as a result of a responsibility to the marriage.

To benefit from the blessings that come with marriages, you must love your spouse decisively. It's a determination that is worth it because you are already in marriage. Such love comes with the determination to treat your spouse the way you would treat yourself.

Married couples always find out that when love is allowed to flow freely in marriages, many mistakes and wrongs are avoided, and they find themselves doing the right things at the right time. Marriage is worthy of such love.

* Forgiveness

For a healthy marriage, forgiveness is a nutrient that should be consumed fully. Forgiveness not only helps the person forgiven, it also helps and heals the forgiver. Some say every human being is worthy of forgiveness.

o forgive doesn't mean to overlook a wrong act, but to look into the wrong act or deed by separating the deed from the doer, because wrong acts are not always done by wrong people. Forgiveness becomes workable when you learn to hear your spouse out and to consider the fact that your spouse is sorry for the wrong done.

* Romance

After planning/sharing the responsibilities in the marriage, allowing love to flourish, letting forgiveness have a smooth ground to flow freely when needed, never underestimate the value of a good night kiss.

Romance can help a marriage in many great ways. A little romance can be the reason a marriage stayed strong and healthy for a very long time. Little acts like buying of gifts, taking your spouse out on a date, and the like, can be quite romantic, and they should never be underestimated.

Hope you experience a long-lasting healthy marriage!

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