The world desperately wants you to be dissatisfied. It will assure you that your current phone, or car, or computer, or television is outdated and desperately needs to be upgraded. It can assure you that if you only had this item, or took this vacation, or dressed like this, you, too, could experience unimaginable happiness and success. In our world, nothing lasts forever and life-long commitments are considered passe.
But what about your most intimate and crucial human relationship? What about your spouse? Are spouses upgraded as well when they no longer produce the same excitement and sizzle as they did in earlier years? What if you “fall out” of love with them? What if they hurt or disappoint you? What if you find someone else more attractive and enjoyable to be around?
The writer of Proverbs gives us clear, direct, uncompromising advice: find satisfaction in your spouse. Just as water quenches our thirst when we draw it from a cistern, so God gave us our spouse to meet certain needs in our life. Do not look to others to meet the emotional or physical needs your spouse is intended to satisfy. If your spouse is not all that you had hoped for, invest more deeply in your marriage! Don’t give up! Do whatever it takes. God is prepared to help you. In the long run, the investment you are willing to make will largely determine the caliber of marriage you enjoy. If you are currently dissatisfied in your marriage, stop looking around at others, roll up your sleeves, and get to work!