RE: Discussion 8-1

In the 1930s and 1940s marriages appeared to be more biblically aligned. When couples married during these times it was more common for the marriage to be between a male and female. The parents were more involved in who their children married and the husband to be was expected to take care of the woman just as good as her father did or better. God instructs the man to leave his father and mother and be one with his wife in Genesis 2:24, Mark 10:7, Matthew 19:5, and Ephesians 5:31. In the early years it was rewarding to be married and raise a family. Scripture declares in Psalms 127:3-5, Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him. 4 Children born to a young man are like arrows in a warriors hands. 5 How joyful is the man whose quiver is full of them. (NLT) In todays culture it is more common to shack up instead of marrying and prioritize careers over having children. Having a big family was one of the number one goals of a married couple in the 30s and 40s. The more children you have the better. While couples today are choosing to have pets instead of children. In the 1930s and 1940s wives loved staying home and raising the children and caring for the house. Todays culture wives are competing with men in the workfield and choosing to send their children to daycares or babysitters. In the 1930s & 1940's it was so important to keep your families together that couples were willing to stay together by any means necessary, flaws and all. Today people are getting divorced just as fast as they get married. Todays culture believes in having open marriages. In the 30s and 40s, intimate relationships outside of your marriage was considered infidelity. When the focus is not family-focused this society becomes more and more selfish and the divorce rates rapidly increase. Also in the early years people married younger and grew old together. Today couples are choosing to get married when they are older, prioritizing their education and career first. There is very little respect for marriages in todays culture. This is why people are marrying whomever and whatever they desire. There are same-sex marriages, people marrying things, and people marrying animals. We have come to the times of 2 Timothy 3, sinfully selfish, and Isaiah 5:20, calling evil good and good evil. A family & marriage research article was published by Bowling Green State University on November 11, 2024. It stated that between 1900-2022 the rate of women experiencing divorces has nearly quadrupled from 4.1 per 1,000 married women in 1900 to 14.6 in 2022. They also stated that the US A divorce rate has declined since reaching its peak of 22.6 in 1980. Today I do not feel the church is as receptive as they could be towards Premarital Counseling because statistically the divorce rate in the church is at a 20-25% rate similar to the secular world. Many times we see divorces happening in the pulpit which weakens the possibility of being able to effectively provide premarital counseling. If the leaders in the church is not walking upright in marriages, they won't be a good candidate to do premarital counseling.