Kathleen’s Reviews > A Happy Marriage: Covenant Joy in a Fallen World > Status Update

The Mystery of Marriage chapter touched on so many good points.
The quotes from Jonathan Edwards are profound & turn our gaze in the right direction.

The chapter on Time was sobering.
Many good points were made about how a married couple matures together.
Sanctification takes place as we age & endure trials, sufferings yet all the many good things life can bring as well.

How marriage ends for the Christian is also discussed & it's here the author makes her best efforts to communicate how this time in our lives is unique contrasted with the world.

This chapter is about worship.
She mentions that marriage isn't the result of worship but it can certainly benefit from it. She contrasts how wedding ceremonies in other cultures & religions are so obviously distinguishable from a traditional God honoring Christian marriage. How the worship of God is typically part of the ceremony. Good point!
The chapter ends by the author focusing on benefits of couples worshipping

This chapter on community has been the best so far. I think the points made here are really what makes the marriage of believers so unique in the sense of a knitting together of their union with an entire church community.
The Church has such a significant role to play in the health & well being of Christian marriages & this chaper lays it out quite beautifully.

The Chapter on Safety & it makes a lot of sense. I did notice there seemed more emphasis on physical safety & how men would be the primary threat to that. Women have become a lot more violent in recent years & antagonistic to husbands body physically & verbally provoking them.

Also with the mention of gossip there was room here to discuss in more detail how women tear down their husbands robbing him of safety.

The chapter on accountability was interesting. I do agree with the rightness of its place in marriage but I think there's some interesting crossover here with what was mentioned by the author in the earlier chapter on personhood.

Some people don't feel they want to open up fully so accountability will have some limitations as it relates to how much of one's personhood they wish to reveal.

The chapter was on children & how they affect marriage, changing the household dynamics.
Several good points made about the behavior of children being a reflection of their parents as well as how the church body participates in the raising & nurturing of the children.

The chapter on Personhood was good.
The particular points made that stood out to me were how the culture defines 'soulmate' & how it's skewed & unbiblical.

There cannot be a complete bearing of the soul, 100% access in all things.
This can only exist between man & God & those trying to achieve this will fail miserably.

"Personhood is made for intimacy but no omniscience."