God Is Still Working “Miracles” in Marriages!

God is for your marriage!

Do you believe that? I mean, really believe that?

It is my opinion that we can come to no other conclusion when we read how Jesus responded in Matthew 19 when the Pharisees asked Him if it was lawful for a man to divorce his wife. Jesus replied: “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no person is to separate” (vv. 4–6).

In Jesus’ conclusive statement, a husband and wife can find two encouraging takeaways:

1. God has joined them together.
2. He does not wish for any marriage to end in divorce.

Yes, God is for your marriage!

“But how can we ever dig ourselves out of this hole we’re in, Emerson?” many might be asking. “Surely we’ve passed the point of no return.”

I wonder if you can relate to any of the following real-life testimonials, from husbands and wives who all thought that way once too.

“I Had Been Praying for a Miracle, Then Something Happened!”   

“I had been praying for a miracle in my marriage—a big one—but felt all hope was lost. I began to make plans on picking up the pieces alone. Then we attended the Love and Respect conference. My husband slept in the car on the way to the meeting and I thought ‘I wasted $50 we don’t have.’ Something happened when you got up and started speaking. My husband woke up. When we left, he couldn’t stop talking . . . and how he wanted to really work on our marriage. He apologized for not being a good husband and wants to make things better. I apologized to him for my attitudes. Things are starting to turn around. Thank you and please keep us in your prayers.”  

“The Changes in My Marriage Can Only Be Attributed to a Miracle!”  

“The changes in my marriage are so drastic that it can only be attributed to a miracle. Thank you, Dr. Emerson, for honoring God by getting this message out there. I will honestly say my life will never be the same; with God’s help, I will always seek God and His ways. My marriage has changed, and my children will be blessed. This truly does make a difference for generations to come.” 

The Adult Kids Called Their Parents’ Marital Turnaround a Miracle

“I am one of five kids, and my parents have constantly been fighting and bitter towards each other since I can remember. . . . It was finally to the breaking point; it was no longer even a concern to any of us kids. We no longer cared what happened, as long as the fighting, yelling, hatred, and bitterness stopped. I have spared you the details, but to kids growing up in a home like that, it was hell. . . . About a year ago, after going to countless seminars, numerous marriage counselors, and many books, they discovered the Love & Respect series. To the rest of us, it was just another stab in the dark, and the seemingly obvious expectation of divorce was still there. When my parents did a 180-degree turnaround, it was tough not to be still in denial and hurt and expect it not to last too long. It was something I would call, without any doubt, a miracle. Something that would have been impossible had it not been for God’s grace and compassion. When they went from twenty-two years of hating each other to holding hands, going out on dates, and cuddling overnight, I could not believe it. They are now a thrilling couple and plan on redoing their wedding vows for their twenty-fifth anniversary. It saved our family; it saved our lives.”

Married Thirty-One Years but Had Not Received God’s Wonderful Gift   

“My husband and I attended the Love and Respect Conference. We have been married for thirty-one years, committed but not always happy. As we chaotically plunged through our forties, we created a lot of devastation in our relationship. My husband did not say, ‘I loved you for some years.’ He waited on me to initiate any sex. He refused to talk about anything of significance. Emotionally, he had shut down and, consequently, did not try to connect with me in any way. For a long time, I chafed under this treatment. . . . This is how we were when we came to the conference. I was afraid that he would be more annoyed than anything else. But . . . as a beautiful, undeserved gift from the Father who so incredibly bestows good things on his children, God opened my husband’s heart, and in two days, he became a changed man. A man who loves me adores me, apologizes to me quickly, makes love to me frequently, and talks to me all the time. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.”

“A Miracle in My Life . . . Great Joy in My Marriage!”   

“My own experiences and your advice have resulted in a miracle in my life. I enjoy my husband as I did when we were courting (more, even). Our sex life has improved 100 percent as I find respecting my husband a turn-on (believe it or not). Today, he gets more than enough respect (and sex), and I get all the love and protection I could ever want. There is now great joy in my marriage, thanks to your help.”

“A Miracle Is Happening in Our Marriage”

“I do not have a ‘sudden miracle’ story for you, but I believe a miracle is happening gradually in our marriage relationship. My husband and I are going to see a counselor . . . next week, and he initiated this! Although he said at the conference that he felt we were ‘beyond this’ in terms of the answers we need, he has noticeably softened since, and I know I have changed my attitude due to the heart-changing, mind-renewing message you shared.”

“A Wonderful Change in Our Relationship . . . A Miracle Breakthrough”   

“A remarkable change in our relationship began, and we both tried to be understanding of each other. Your course fitted in perfectly and filled in the missing pieces that differences are not bad when it comes to how we do things and relate. We are to respect our differences. Laughter and peace have come into our home again. Thank you! My husband and I had several opportunities to share the principles of ‘Love and Respect’ with several other Christian couples and how God was working in our lives and marriage. The joy and excitement that my husband has as he powerfully relates the message to other men and their wives can realize hope. . . . Sarah felt impressed to give me a CD on the introduction to your series. How grateful I was, and I knew that this was part of God’s miracle breakthrough for me and us as a couple.”

“I Never Thought This Was Possible”   

The turnaround in our marriage is a miracle and is a profound event in my life. . . . For example, we have had hard discussions since I finished the book and since we attended the conference, but not one has turned into an argument. We have had disagreements, but not disconnection. Every hard discussion has resulted in a deeper level of intimacy in our marriage. I never thought this was possible. God is able to do immeasurably more than we ever ask or imagine.”

Though “miracle” may not be the most accurate word in describing the turnarounds in these marriages, hopefully we can agree that God is still in the business of giving life to that which was once dead. Most importantly, this includes those who were once dead in their sin being made alive in Christ (Ephesians 2:1–10), but it also includes marriages like the ones above that were once thought to be hopeless, heading toward an inevitable divorce. But when they let the truth and power of Ephesians 5:33 penetrate their hearts, and acted upon God’s command to love and respect without condition, they experienced their “miracle”!

Yes, God is for your marriage! He “gives life to the dead and calls into being things that do not exist” (Romans 4:17).

And if God is for you (and your marriage), who can be against you (Romans 8:31)? Or as The Message puts it, “With God on our side like this, how can we lose?”