by Julie Michael

Created on: November 27, 2007

I never truly appreciated my marriage vows during my first two marriages. And I know for certain that neither of my first two husbands appreciated those vows. I married two abusive, cheating, immature men. For sanity's sake, and due to the abuse, I left both of them. I married my husband now, two years ago, and counting. The day we said "I Do", those words took on an entirely new meaning to me. I actually made those vows from my heart, from the depths of my soul... And I know my husband did too.

Marriage is meant to be a lifetime, forever commitment. It's not meant to be conditional or "if". I knew that when I married the first two times, although I didn't truly understand it. Otherwise, I'd never have tried to make that commitment to either of my ex-husbands who showed signs of abusiveness before the vows were ever made. Marriage is a lifetime covenant between man and woman, those vows are made in front of God and man, and are sacred.

I never realized, until my husband now, just how serious a lifetime commitment really is. Committing oneself to a lifetime, or 'Until Death Do Us Part', is a serious vow, and not one that should be made lightly. What an awesome responsibility we have, to make sure that we are making that vow to the right person, and to take our vows seriously! It grieves my heart to see so many couples headed for divorce, with problems that could be worked out with a little bit of communication, respect, and perhaps even marital counseling.

Marriage is meant forever, not just until things get too hard or until feelings get lost or mixed up. The word "Love" is a verb, not a noun. It's an action, not a thing. Loving, cherishing, and committing to our partner, is something we do for life, not just until things get rough. Marriage is a wonderful thing, between two people who love, cherish and honor one another... Or at least, it should be. That's something to consider when considering saying "I Do". Can you "Do" until death do you part? Are you WILLING to "Do" until death do you part?

What a gift marriage is, and what a wonderful gift forever is! My husband and I both know how much forever means... and we both wish that we had a thousand lifetimes and forevers to do it all over again. That's what marriage is all about! I am so thrilled to be spending the rest of my life with the man that I love, and knowing that we are united together forever, is an awesome feeling!

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