The Glass in the Frame

  

Today I caught my three year old daughter once again taking a peek at a picture of my husband and I.  It was taken just two days before our wedding.  It is still in the original frame. It is still my favorite picture of us.  

I took the frame from my daughter and noticed for the first time that somehow moisture had worked its way in between the glass and the picture.  (This probably happened when my daughter took the picture out of the frame last time she got ahold of it.) I took the picture and glass from the frame and made my best attempt to remove the picture from the glass.  The corner of the picture became a bit damaged in the process.  

I realized if I continued to pull at it that the entire picture would be ruined.

When I realized this it made me think of something our pastor said to us before we got married.  "The closer you two are to God, the closer you will be to eachother."  

My husband and I strive for this in our marriage.   We desire to know our creator more.  We have a wonderful marriage (not perfect) but the moment either of us choose to pull away from God our marriage will get damaged. 

I imagined the glass as a symbol of God.  Our picture (us) fused to the glass forever.  

We can all choose to pull away from God because of sin in our lives, a struggle that we refuse to let God handle, or maybe an attitude of discontentment.  When we pull away from God we are also choosing to damage our marriage.  

The enemy will take that as an opportunity to rip our marriages apart. 

If either my husband or I decided to try to rip the picture from the glass it would be damaged forever.  If we kept at it and completely removed the picture from the glass the picture wouldn't be recognizable.  You might be able to tell that there were two people in the picture.  You might even be able to tell that they were once happy.  In the end all you would be able to see is a ruined picture that neither of us could mend.  

We could take the picture and try our best to fix the damages on our own but our efforts would be in vain. 

  

As you read this you may be thinking of your own marriage. 

 Your picture may be in a frame but the glass is missing.  

When the glass is missing the picture is more vulnerable to ruin. 

Or maybe your picture is in the frame and one of you is clinging to the glass but your spouse has been pulling away from glass for a long time and your picture is damaged.  

Maybe your picture has been ripped entirely from the glass.

There is only one who can make the picture new.  Not the photographer but the one who created the people in the picture. 

The one who created marriage. 

"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." 

Psalm 147:3 ESV

If your marriage is damaged seek Him.  He is holding onto you and He desires to make you new.  Pray for your spouse. God desires to heal your marriage.  

A healed marriage brings Him glory. 

God is the ultimate healer.  

If your marriage is unrecognizable and forever ruined....there is hope.  Am I saying that your marriage will be restored? No, though all things are possible for God!  I would love it if all marriages could be restored. Two people make up a marriage.  You can only make the choices for your half. You can't force the other person make good choices. You can choose forgiveness over bitterness with God's help. If the marriage is over cling to your creator.  He is already holding onto you.  He will never let you go.  He is our comfort. 

"For the Lord will not forsake his people, he will not abandon his heritage." 

Psalm 94:14 ESV

When we became the children of the One True God we entered into his heritage...his people.  

He keeps His promises to us.  

He will never leave you.  

"Blessed be the God and Father of our LORD Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort." 

2 Corinthians 1:3

He is the God of all comfort.  

Whether you have a happy marriage, an uphappy marriage or you are no longer married...the purpose for all of us is to live our lives according to His purpose.

To glorify our creator. 

It is our choice whether or not we choose to pull away.  

It is our choice is follow Christ or not.  

He never abandons us. 

You can choose Him in the midst of it all.  No matter what arrows are flown your way. 

You can choose to give your marriage to Him.  

He is the only one that can protect it.  

He is the only one who can take a damaged sometimes unrecognizable marriage and make it new.  

He is the only one who can make you new.