The 4th and Best Self-worth Strategy

A strong and sturdy sense of self-worth lived practically in a balanced way positively promotes an attractive, high quality of life. Those who invest time and energy in this quest and find it are to be envied. Independence, integrity, wisdom and joy will be among the spontaneous results thereof. Don’t miss out!

I hope, dear Reader, that you have been able to read the last two blogs on this important subject. If not, here are the links that will take you there!  Intro to Self-worth  and  Self-worth Strategies 1-3

A Short Review

In the two above-mentioned blogs, we have seen that self-worth has a huge influence on our lives. Depending on how it was defined in us, it will impact our relationships for better or for worse, and we will experience more or less happiness, contentment and success.

There is a worldwide tendency to base our sense of value on three strategies: materialism, achievement and relationships. If you take a moment to analyze yourself and others, you may recognize these systems.

Parents and teachers are especially challenged to apply their knowledge of this subject in their daily dealings with youngsters in such a way as to avoid creating any big voids and dependencies. For example, a man who has been conditioned to base his value on his achievements will more than likely be confronted with a huge crisis the day after he retires: not only has he lost his job, but his self-worth is also history.

The last of the four strategies is our subject for today. To me, it seems to be the best option. It is the strongest, the sturdiest and the safest way to go. Let’s have a look:

Strategy Number 4 - The Ideal Partner

Many people try one or more of the first three strategies, not knowing there is a fourth. Those are their only options. Too many do poorly on this plan and suffer from chronic low self-worth, or they spend their lives vacillating with a partial sense of self-esteem, but always questioning their true value.

Of the first three strategies, if I had to choose, I think number three would be the best. Having good, solid, mature, loving relationships would definitely fill the bill, but problems arise when relationships fail. So in this blog, I would like to explore the third option and try to “create” the ideal partner for the ideal relationship. Are you with me?

Imagine you are a very needy person and are married to a very balanced, understanding and loving person. In such a relationship, many of your deficits could be worked through, and your relationship could develop into an emotionally balanced friendship. Any children produced in this marriage could profit from the peaceful atmosphere and would be likely to develop a high sense of self-worth. This happy circumstance would be a huge benefit and would help them master their challenges in life with greater ease than most.

Do you like hitting the bull’s eye?  Life is too short to leave important decisions to coincidence. What are your ideals, visions and goals based on? When you have the answer to these questions, it’s easier to set criteria and guidelines that will help in lifestyle choices of all kinds, including the choice of a partner.

Characteristics of the Ideal Partner

Inner Value

He or she should have a high sense of self-worth and recognize that his or her value is independent of achievements. He or she should not be ruled by the selfish needs that can so often lead to a dead end relationship.

Wisdom

Of course, it would be nice if this person had access to divine wisdom and could see past the present and understand the connectivity of life’s circumstances. Wisdom is the basis of our decisions and the implementation thereof. We could all use a bit more, right?

The Art of Love

He or she should be skilled in the art of love, not a temporary love that is produced by accomplishments, but unconditional love that loves one’s partner as he or she is (BLOG). This kind of love is not swayed or ruffled by weaknesses and mistakes. This person should have enough time to be with one through all the challenges of life and help find solutions to problems and raise one’s quality of life. He or she should be dependable and financially responsible, generous and kind, willing to share of his or her abundance for the good of others.

Faithfulness

It would be ideal if the partner we choose would never leave us. It should be someone who always remains faithful in spite of our weaknesses and faults, loves us even though we sometimes disappoint, and helps us although we don’t deserve it. It would be ideal to have someone who was always available with a friendly, wise and understanding smile.

Many of these important principles can be practiced in a family. The young should be able to learn from their elders and profit from their experience, including their faith. This is their motivation to live their lives for bigger, better, higher, deeper and more loving goals.

Summary

It is obvious that there is no such ideal person on earth today. BUT there was ONE 2000 years ago! His name is Jesus Christ. Today He lives in heaven and, according to His own words, is functioning as the Mediator between us and His Father. He wants to take us to Heaven so we can be with Him and His Father.

When you know Jesus, you will find in Him the source of love, a place of trust and security where you can be yourself and recharge your batteries. HE has all the wonderful characteristics that we can only dream of. If you are already married, building a relationship with Him will bring high self-worth, stability and wisdom into your marriage. You will be a strong team of three, strong in both giving and taking.

Through your relationship with Him, you can become independent of surrounding circumstances. You won’t fold under pressure or lose orientation in a storm of life. NO, with HIM, life has meaning that goes beyond this life here and now. This fact alone can produce strength and joy. He wants us to be joyful and courageous at all times and in all circumstances and to enjoy a high sense of value. To underscore this, He calls us HIS CHILDREN! That’s the highest position He can give us. He even gives us bodyguards and other divine privileges.

An Offer

It is His goal to get us ready to spend eternity with Him. He invests a lot to that end, His life, His energy, His reputation and His time. He is willing to give it all for you, dear Reader. He makes us the offer. It’s up to us to accept or reject it. That’s our part in the relationship. Every person has the chance to transform his or her feelings of inferiority into a solid sense of self-worth. Happy are they that take Him up on His offer!

In the last few chapters of the four Gospels, we can read the description of the depth to which true love can go. The length and breadth, the height and depth of the love of God is almost inconceivable. Thinking such thoughts will strengthen us. He is happy to give us His love so that it may grow and spread to others.

Ref:  "Knowing God in the Real World" , Book by Jon Paulien

How Much are You Worth? FOUR Strategies!

Our quality of life is largely dependent on our feelings of self-worth. In this case, it’s definitely worth it to find out how these inner mechanisms work and how we might be able to improve our lot. Happy people generally have a high sense of self-worth and respect for others. Do you think that is true???

Dear Reader, it would be of great benefit for you to read the previous BLOG dealing with feelings inferiority and self-worth.

Self-worth Strategies

Throughout childhood every one of us develops a strategy in order to get answers to these questions: Who am I? What am I? Who loves me? What shall I become?

In this process, we quickly recognize how to evoke a positive reaction from those around us and how we can gather the necessary points in order to feel somewhat valuable. Some are better at this game than others.

Here are the three strategies that are implemented most often:

Strategy 1 - Achievement

A child learns and then thinks: "Whenever I sing, I get attention." "When I color a pretty picture, my father gives me a compliment." Just two examples of many. These experiences should not necessarily be a problem, but when the attention and love shown are given only as a result of achievement, and the child’s emotional love-tank (BLOG) is filled only due to accomplishments, achievement becomes the dominant self-worth strategy.

In this way, the child learns to measure him- or herself by his or her achievements. In school it becomes even clearer. There it counts how well you can do certain things. You get graded. And isn’t it great to be able to bask in the sun of your achievements? Then, of course, there are sports and movie stars that motivate you to do more and be better….

Men have to have the muscles and strength; with the ladies, it’s a perfect body. For some, achievements count the most. "I am going to study and get a doctorate. Then I’ll be somebody." We all want to be especially good at something. Status is more and more important and becomes the basis for happiness.

AT SOME POINT the moment comes when one realizes that accomplishments don’t have as much to do with truly mature feelings of self-worth as one had once thought. If that were true, all doctors would be happy and all stars would be able to live without drugs.

Good achievements are somehow being devalued. The bar is being set higher and higher. People are being programmed to be dissatisfied with their accomplishments, because otherwise, it is thought, they would not be motivated to achieve more.

If they suddenly find themselves sick, aged or disabled by an accident, their dream of high achievement is destroyed and they feel like a nobody. Do you agree that it is unwise to bind our sense of value to our achievements?  

No wonder! In our society, where everything is judged by accomplishments, where the demand for productivity is steadily increasing and more and more effort is required, it’s no wonder that an attitude of high achievement has wormed its way into our system of judging our self-worth. When a person with this mindset goes into retirement, depression will not be long in coming. Sad, but true.

Strategy 2 – Wealth/Materialism

Today, children realize very young that the finest clothing, the best iPhone, the newest bike and the coolest toys will get them the attention and admiration they are missing from their parents. That’s what they go for. Sometimes it’s quantity: the more toys, the better; or it may be the quality: only brand name clothing will do. These things become the focus of their self-worth strategy.

How can a child who has 100 toys ever be able to appreciate even one of them properly? These children grow up. Then it’s the car, the house, the vacations and/or expensive hobbies that catch their attention and become overly important. "Whenever I get into my car, I have a great feeling!" What if my car gets a scratch? Or a better model comes out? Or my neighbor gets a better one?

For a while the pride of ownership lingers, but the probability is very high that the luster of all these possessions will eventually fade. If that were not so, rich people would be happier than poor, but actually, the opposite is known to be true. Wealthy people have discovered that the more things they possess, the less they value them. Inflation strikes again. If we can have everything we want whenever we want it, the things we desire lose their value.

Some people fear for their possessions. The more they have, the more they can lose. However, it would be good to remember that we can’t take anything with us.  Our self-worth should be based on something that will stand firm in life and death. Wouldn’t that be something?

For those who are not so stuck on possessions, this quote from Carl Friedrich Gauss (mathematician, 1777-1855) may be fitting: " It is not knowledge, but the act of learning, not possessions but the acquisition thereof, not the arrival but the act of getting there, which grants the greatest enjoyment." This quote points out the complexity of materialistic, want-to-have thinking. The pursuit of enjoyment is strongly linked to our desire to own things and seems to be growing more and more into a kind of religion.

To each his own status symbol. In our materialistic western world it is clearly a temptation to hang our sense of self-worth on our possessions.

Strategy 3 - Relationships

Another very common way of evaluating ourselves is contemplating what others think of us and how they treat us. HSPs (high sensitive people - BLOG) and others who are very perceptive and sensitive often discern and interpret the emotions and reactions of others in connection to themselves.

People of higher intelligence tend to use this third method of defining their self-worth. They are often able to see through the pitfalls of the other two methods, but because they don’t know any better way, they are stuck with this variant.

The easiest place to observe the application of this strategy is in the bond between two teenage lovers. Nothing can raise our feeling of self-worth like the knowledge that we are valued, thought of as unique, and desired by another. What others think of us has a huge impact on what we think about ourselves and who we think we are.

Another place where we can observe the implementation of this strategy is with parents who try to define their own value through their children. They really want their children to be successful so they can be proud of them. Actually, truth be told, it’s they themselves they want to be proud of. If their children are in any way disadvantaged, they feel slighted and their sense of value is endangered.

Some people are obsessed with the idea of getting some star or well-known person’s autograph. They might frame the signature, or refrain from washing their hands after shaking hands with a famous person. These scenarios may be a little exaggerated, but the fact remains that famous people can have a strong influence on our feelings of self-worth. If that were not the case, the film industry would not be so successful.

Why is it that it is so easy to overdo things when it comes to connecting ourselves with important people? The higher their social status, the more important their opinion of us is. So we make our own value dependent on what others think of us.

How would you feel if Ex-President Obama and his wife invited you to dinner? Perhaps you would choose another famous person. In any case, how big an influence would you say such a rendezvous would have on your thoughts, conversation and self-esteem?

Example: MARRIAGE

Marriage is the most common relationship used to boost one’s self-esteem. Many marry with the audacious hope that the value they have found in the eyes of their partner will carry them throughout their whole life.

Married people try to build their self-worth in basically two ways, neither of which is successful over the course of time.

The Takers

Needy people in particular hope their partners will satisfy them, and in this way they think they will be valuable. They are looking for affirmation and emotional support, but don’t have a lot of energy to pass it on. They remain in their taker’s role.

The Givers

These people seem to be more self-confident. They bolster their own value by building up and caring for others. Encouraging and helping others makes them happy. At the same time, they can reject offers of help. Some like to receive affirmation for their services, others not at all.

As human beings, we are naturally quite complex. We are not just one type or the other, but general tendencies can be observed: Most people tend to be TAKERS while claiming to be GIVERS. How interesting! Reality is not always easy to recognize.

Let’s have a look at some marriage combinations:

The “Taker-Taker” Couple

This is a marriage that can quickly turn into something akin to hell. Both expect something the other cannot or will not give. During the romantic time of courtship, it is possible for a Taker to temporarily morph into a Giver. This serves the purpose of making a good catch. That’s how two empty people who expect to get happiness from each other get together. Sooner or later, their wedded bliss will more than likely end up in misery, depression and disaster.

A person who wants to take from his or her partner will do the same with his or her children. The poor children have to satisfy their parents’ needs, which is a physical and emotional impossibility. The pressure and stress they feel is enormous. These parents tend to be tough on their kids and impose unrealistic expectations on them.

The “Giver-Taker” Couple

It seems logical that these two types would attract each other. They feel like their relationship was made in heaven. The giver can give, and the taker can take. So why shouldn’t they be happy?

In extreme cases, where the giver and taker are almost full-blooded, there is a risk that neither of them will ever get started in the process of maturing. They will never really grow up, never learn the truth about themselves. The takers especially remain needy and dependent in body, mind and spirit. No giver can ever give enough to compensate a true taker’s never-ending deficit.   

The self-worth that is developed in us on the basis of our relationships is often temporary and shaky. Many get tired and can’t keep up the relationship. Givers invest a lot in relationships. Meaning, value, time and energy have all been given to the taker. The giver begins to recognize an ever-growing sense of emotional dependence in the taker and suddenly becomes aware that his or her own needs are in no way being met. The clearer this becomes, the more likely separation will result.

In the end, it all comes down to the motives of the parties involved. Giving should be the result of mature self-worth and not a basic need. The stronger the need for affirmation, the faster the giver will realize he or she is not receiving enough of it. At first, efforts are doubled until he or she has no more strength. That’s when a breakdown generally occurs. The giver loses respect for the taker and allows the relationship to fall apart.

The “Giver-Giver” Couple

The solution seems to be found in this combination, but it is a rarity. Givers actually feel a bit uncomfortable with other givers.

If one’s sense of value is tied up in giving, taking, or receiving, feelings of guilt and maybe some embarrassment will occur. This dynamic between two givers ruins their attempts to build up their self-worth through their relationship. Should they somehow end up getting married in spite of these difficulties, one great risk will accompany them. At some point, one of them may meet a taker, who would seem to fully satisfy his or her needs. This could shake the marriage violently and end in divorce.

Who already knows what their partner bases his or her self-worth on at the wedding? Very few take the time and trouble to get to know the “system” hidden within their loved one’s make-up. Terri and I didn’t know anything about that when we got married, but today many things have become clearer, and we enjoy passing our knowledge on to others in marriage seminars and counseling sessions.

Congratulations that you made it this far! In order to keep today's blog comfortably short, I decided to save the fourth part, actually the best, for next time. You won't want to miss it!

See you then!

Part 4 – How to Deal with Stress

Amazingly enough, there ARE people who deal well with stress. We can learn a lot about stress management from them. (In this picture, my wife is a good example!!!)

Dear Reader, I heartily recommend reading through the first three parts on the subject of stress before continuing with this one. They contain some tips about stress management you won’t want to miss: definition, causes and prevention of stress are discussed.

Stress Management

Now you have reached the point where stress is a fact of life – your life. Stress can come in many different forms, with many different faces and from many different sources. In other words, there is quite a variety of stressors to be had. Now the game is on, and it’s your personal game of stress management. The trick is to find a healthy balance between tension and relaxation.

A Change of Terms

The term stress management focuses on stress and how to get rid of it. If we can move away from thinking about stress, we will actually be moving closer to our own resources or skills, the goal of which is to help us have a good feeling, namely relaxation. That’s the whole point of stress management.  

A more positive term is resource management, which is another popular concept used in connection with stress management.

Rather than focusing on stress, a negative idea, we should use our energy to meet various challenges as they arise.

Resource Management

Analysis necessary

Analysis is necessary

It is important to take time to do a situation analysis. (BLOG – Causes of Stress) The better you know the causes, the easier it is to decide which solution to apply from your toolbox of resources.

It’s important to identify deep-seated patterns and break endless vicious cycles. Good friends or a good counselor can be a great help in this process. They can help us recognize points where we are either under- or over- challenged. If a person is not sufficiently challenged in daily life, he or she can experience a massive stress reaction, which must be met with appropriate measures. This condition is called   boreout.

Each person is different and must find the form of stress management that best fits his or her specific needs. One of the most successful resources available is exercise. To be more specific, aerobic exercise.

Aerobic Exercise

I’m sure you recognize the subject of 'the importance of exercise' from last week’s blog on stress. Exercise is a “miracle drug” for many health challenges. If you take this point seriously and put it into practice, you will gain traction in every area of life.

Moderate endurance exercise serves to decrease stress and promotes the neuronal restructuring process of neurotransmitter secretion, which brings about balance and relaxation. Some fitting forms of endurance exercise are jogging, Nordic walking, swimming and cycling.   

These should all be done in moderation, building up endurance over a period of time. We should make our first experiences with exercise positive ones. After all, we cannot expect to start off like a world champion. If we begin moderately and increase our endurance gradually, we will be most successful in the long run. The best and surest way to ensure success is to ally yourself with a friend or small group of like-minded individuals. Perhaps you have a friend, family member or neighbor who might share the same interest and goals. Remember that weather is never an excuse to stay at home. There is no such thing as bad weather; you just have to wear the right clothing.

Maybe you could involve the whole family in your sport activities! That would not only strengthen and improve your own health and theirs, but it could also be a fantastic bonding experience! Just think of the many possible benefits!

The Ability to Love

Another great resource is the skill to treat people kindly, even when they seem to be stressors. Remember:

It is easy to judge the actions of others when we set our own preferences as the standard!

We have a tendency to experience stress in our relationships with others when our own expectations are not fulfilled. Unfulfilled expectations lead to disappointments. If we are not careful with these, they can lead to frustration, which can then fester and turn into aggression. If we harbor these negative thoughts without working them out, we will find ourselves trapped in the vicious cycle of toxic thinking (see BLOG). This cycle must be broken as quickly as possible and replaced with positive thoughts in order to avoid permanent damage to our psyche and relationships.

Consider your own emotional intelligence, your social competence and your empathy (BLOG). Remember that every conflict is an opportunity to grow. If you recognize these opportunities and meet them squarely, rather than trying to avoid them, you can profit greatly.

Many equate love with warm feelings and romance, and these should, of course, be part of the package. However, in a mature love relationship, they are the product, not the motor. Wise decisions, values and principles are the qualities upon which our actions must be based in order to foster an environment where mature feelings can be nurtured. These feelings are not the basis for a solid relationship, but the product of it. These mature feelings are not caused by our own loneliness or our damaged past.

Those who practice their ability to love, who know what unconditional love is (BLOG) and apply it in their daily experience, will develop their characters more and more to become masters of circumstances. These are people who will not lose their cool because of external circumstances, but their inner peace will keep them calm in the face of difficulties. Isn’t it interesting that we find so many such examples in the Bible? That’s because faith can be a decidedly positive factor in this process of finding peace within (BLOG).

Setting Limits

People who love people always set limits. It may sound strange, but limits are an indispensable part of a wise lifestyle. Unconditional love (BLOG), for example, does not allow itself to be abused and destroyed. This is because this kind of love is founded in high self-worth. Those who can love others also love themselves. If a person hates him- or herself, how can he or she love anyone else?

Strive for Balance

Now it’s time to learn how to use our own resources in order to bring all the different areas of our lives into balance. Thanks to the ability to prioritize, we can adjust our time and energy investments to match the goals we set for ourselves.

Training Plan

All habits and attitudes that we would like to change can be systematically transformed into new habits and attitudes with the help of the following plan. The whole family can benefit from this transformation

It is best to begin with ONE attitude or ONE change. When a new habit has been formed, you can start working on the next one.

WISHING YOU EVERY SUCCESS !

10 Things That Can Destroy a Marriage

"Our marriage got off to a wonderful start. Everything looked so good, but something drove us apart. It’s hard to say what exactly it was.  I would do something about it if I only knew the cause."

Let’s Protect Our Marriages

Everybody knows it. Divorce rates are high. What would you say about a person who has been married three times? Where do you think the problem lies? What are the causes of marital challenges in our society?

The following 10 points are challenges, yes dangers, for married couples:

All a weed needs to grow is a small crack in the sidewalk. Sometimes not even that! Let’s not allow the following irritants to grow like weeds.

The following 10 points are challenges, yes dangers, for married couples:

1. Excessive Demands and Physical Exhaustion

When we feel exhausted or unable to meet the demands made on us, we tend to make more and bigger mistakes than otherwise. This is a condition that requires special caution and should be avoided whenever possible. Young couples who try to work and study at the same time are especially endangered. Certain limits must be respected. No one should try to work fulltime, take classes in night school, have a baby (or two), renovate a house and start a business all at once.  

It sounds ridiculous, but many young couples do exactly that, and then they are surprised when their marriages fall apart. Why shouldn’t it? The only time they see each other is when they are exhausted. But if they care about their marriages, husbands and wives need to reserve time for each other. Sustaining a friendship requires an investment of time and attention. This is the best safeguard for relationships.

IMPORTANT: While some things are important, and others are VERY important, we should never forget the MOST IMPORTANT THING, our own marriages. Getting these categories mixed up can be disastrous.

2. Unsatisfactory Management of Finances

Nowadays more and more people live on credit. They can’t seem to wait until they have saved enough money to buy what they want. It is a wiser choice to spend only the money you HAVE on things you actually NEED.

It’s so easy to get into financial straits, much easier to get in than out. Those who have not learned the value of doing without or waiting for something are especially challenged. (See BLOG on EQ). Especially for making an expenditure for a car, a house or a vacation, the wisdom of Solomon would be helpful.

3. Selfishness = the Search for Oneself

Who am I, and who am I not? Self-reflection is necessary for a happy marriage, and self-awareness is the first step toward self-improvement.

There are two kinds of people in the world, the givers and the takers. A marriage between two givers can be beautiful. In a marriage between a giver and a taker, there is bound to be friction (BLOG). But two takers can tear each other to pieces within weeks. Unrestrained selfishness can quickly destroy a marriage and the parties involved.

In this context it is a great advantage to be acquainted with the two components of love: the conditional and the unconditional ingredients (BLOG).

What is selfishness anyway? It is mostly seen in people who are not happy with themselves, people who have not found themselves completely and cannot accept themselves with all their strengths and weaknesses.

Here’s a simple self-test you can do: When you get up in the morning, look into the mirror and smile and say: “Good morning, Self. I’m looking forward to spending a great day with you!” If you can do that, you’re on the right track, unless, of course, you have a tendency toward narcissism.

Selfish people always ask, “What’s in it for me?” Humble people ask, “What’s in it for EVERYBODY?” This is another case where emotional intelligence is needed (BLOG).

4. Family Challenges

Many marriages are overshadowed by difficult relationships and unresolved conflicts among relatives. If one or both parties are unable to cut the cord and act independently of their parents, they will also be unable to dedicate themselves completely to their beloved. This situation will tend to smolder and provides many opportunities for sparks to ignite any available tinder. This is often a result of the selfish, clingy “love” demonstrated by parents who cannot let their children go to live their own lives.

Parents (grandparents) can be a great blessing if they recognize and respect the social boundaries of their adult children’s marriages. (Pic: our family and grandchildren, Jeremy is missing)

5. Unrealistic Expectations

Some couples enter the marriage relationship expecting promenades through parks of primroses, candlelight dinners, rose petals on their beds and boundless joy. It is impossible for two imperfect people to fulfill these expectations. Social media tends to create such ideas and dreams in young people, and all too soon these prove to be empty balloons that burst and disappoint. If on top of that, one has added expectations generated by one’s own loneliness and empty emotional tank, more disappointment will surely follow.

Therefore it is advisable to work on one’s own emotional balance first; needs should be discovered and possible plans for solutions set in motion. Those who are in balance before they marry are better prepared to make good choices when looking for a partner and are more likely to enjoy a successful marriage. 

6. A Lack of the Ability to Love

Our ability to love comes from our parents. Well, we couldn’t choose our parents, could we? So, what can we do if we didn’t get much of that skill? In that case, we are challenged to look a little deeper into the subject. It would be very helpful to learn about the love languages (BLOG) and how to put them into practice in daily life.

A person who wants to practice true love will continue to think of ways to make his or her partner happy, even after years of marriage. He or she will be there for support and to show appreciation in a variety of ways. How about a bouquet of roses for the lady of the house?

7. Lack of Self-discipline

Society today teaches us to say: “I want it ALL! And I want it NOW!” We have somehow forgotten how to wait, or we never learned it. For many, setting limits, understanding and appreciating them is just too far away from reality. Those who cannot control themselves are in grave danger of being unfaithful in marriage. One temperament in particular (BLOG) tends to fly like a butterfly from flower to flower collecting nectar as it goes. A person who has trouble controlling his or her appetite may also be at risk in other ways. Important: Sexuality is the giving of oneself and one’s affection to one’s partner in order to bring joy to him or her. That takes discipline…

8. Professional Crises

Unemployment is a problem that is especially disturbing for men. Financial setbacks and insecurity can cause nervousness and outbursts of anger in the marriage and family. Interpersonal conflicts at work or getting fired are high stress factors and can definitely put additional pressure on a marriage. In these situations, the role of the partner in affirming team spirit, being content with less, standing together through thick and thin and encouraging the other with loving words and deeds can make all the difference between success and failure.

It is interesting to note that success in one’s career can also be a real danger. Sometimes when a person floats from one victory to the next, he or she can lose sight of his or her priorities. The marriage relationship should always be number ONE and should not come after one’s job. Let’s try not to let success become a stumbling stone.  

9. Personal Immaturity 

Remember: A wedding is just a snapshot. It should be a happy beginning to an even happier future.

It’s generally not too hard to get a young girl to marry you if she has not yet developed the necessary intellectual competence and social farsightedness to think everything through rationally. The younger a girl marries, the higher the probability of divorce. Terri and I teach young adult students what to look for in their choice of partners. It’s a fascinating subject for them, and for us. J  

10. Pornography, Gambling and Other Addictions

Many young people think they can handle a little pornography, gambling or alcohol, for example, without getting hurt by them. That may be true for a few, but many fall into the trap of addiction and lose a big chunk of the quality of life and happiness that could have been theirs had they avoided those things. Their problems often begin when they experiment with some known vice and finally end in death … or in the death of a marriage.

Pornography is a specialist at destroying our ability to love. When viewing your spouse as an object to be used becomes a habit, instead of seeing her as the subject of tender love and affection, love is destroyed.

Alcohol and Drugs are notorious murderers, not only of marriages and families, but also of the people who overuse them. Studies show that 40% of all Americans and Canadians have close family members who are alcoholics. Children that grow up in such an environment are branded for life.

The freer we are, the greater our potential for happiness, but sometimes it’s not easy to get free. Nowadays there are social institutions that offer support and counsel to those who would like to get free from their addictions. The sooner they take care of it, the better.

Closing Thoughts

We have just considered 10 “Matrimonial Murderers” – not a very cheerful subject, but perhaps you know someone who might be helped by thinking about and recognizing the dangers hidden in these topics. You could help protect and promote the happiness of a marriage and/or family (maybe even your own) by sharing this with someone you care about. Thank you for reading, caring and sharing.