Slandering a loved one is a way to trigger distrust and a cycle of revenge. Many marriages could be saved if one spouse would make a commitment to break the cycle. Other marriages cannot be saved so easily because one spouse continues to abuse the other relentlessly. Yet many times when one spouse decides to absorb the abuse and return good for evil, the cycle can be broken and the relationship restored.

Searching for Reasons

To find reasons why divorce is so rampant these days, one does not have to look very far. By that, I don't mean to suggest that the one reason which is the answer to all problems is so close to us that we cannot miss it. What I intend to suggest is something many people may find very unpopular and perhaps nearly universally offensive.

Marriage Covenant - A Wedding Vow, Promise

When we enter into marriage, we make promises

• to God, who trusted use with His loved ones,
• to the one we are marrying, to remain faithful
• to our families, to stay the course and never divorce without dire reason
• and to society, to uphold the most foundational covenant necessary to the honor and survival of the nation

and those promises are for life. If we're honest, we keep those promises. Divorce, adultery, abuse should never be an option. If we break the vows, we're not honest; we're liars and hypocrites and we need to come clean. That may seem harsh, but to love people sincerely, we must think of marriage in these terms.