Married for God: Making Your Marriage the Best It Can Be
Author
Christopher Ash
Bibliography
Ash, Christopher. Married for God: Making Your Marriage the Best It Can Be. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2016. 165pp.
Category
Marriage and Family
Summary
Married for God: Making Your Marriage the Best it Can Be offers critical insight into the very heart of marriage. It pulls back the layers of selfishness we are so prone to hide behind and reveals the truth that marriage is in fact not about us and our desires, but about our Creator God. Humbling and freeing, this truth allows us to approach marriage in the only way it will ever be successful: on God’s terms. It reveals that the first and most important goal of our marriage is to honor and love Him above everything else (Matt.22:37-38).
The book proposes a God-centered view of marriage, children, sex, and singleness, that includes a life of faithfulness modeled to us perfectly by God. At any stage of life, it reminds us that turning to a steadfast and trustworthy God is our only hope, and solitary answer in the chaos of our world. It shows that all of life is dependent on God’s grace offered to us in Jesus.
Married for God starts in the best place possible—where we so often fail to start: “in the beginning” (Gen. 1:1). It takes us back to the core idea of who God is, and who He says we are—fundamental truths we must continually call to mind. It challenges our belief system and reveals the counter-cultural idea that the best marriage is not one where all of our needs are served, but where God is served.
Benefit for Pastoral Ministry
One of the main benefits of Married for God can be found in the message it speaks to the pastor and his own family. It’s difficult to consider how to help others apply this, when certainly we first need to ourselves. Because countless marriages in a church will undoubtedly begin to reflect that of its leader, the state of his marriage is paramount. As the pastor lives out a Biblical view of marriage, it preaches daily to others, married or single, the goodness and faithfulness of God. It’s easy to teach truths to others, living it, especially when you’re in the spotlight, is harder. Married for God is a solid resource to help anyone do just that.
Rating
Essential — Recommended — Helpful — Pass It By
Recommendation
In our culture our view of marriage and sex have been warped into something intended to meet only our own desires. Married for God shows us how life and marriage are most meaningful when we place God at the center instead of ourselves.
