{"id":9317,"date":"2012-08-14T15:34:00","date_gmt":"2012-08-14T20:34:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites-stage.familylife.com\/flministries\/?p=9317"},"modified":"2012-08-14T15:34:00","modified_gmt":"2012-08-14T20:34:00","slug":"what-are-the-secrets-for-a-lasting-marriage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp-stage.familylife.com\/www\/articles\/topics\/real-stories\/marriage-real-stories\/lifelong-marriages\/what-are-the-secrets-for-a-lasting-marriage\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are the Secrets for a Lasting Marriage?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In an age of widespread divorce, it is becoming less and less common for marriages to last a half of a century. Between 2006 and 2008, Mary Larmoyeux\u00a0talked with some couples who had reached this milestone.<\/p>\n

Lifelong marriages<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Bill and Jean Barber<\/a>: <\/strong>“We\u2019ve been through so much over the years\u2014good and bad.”<\/p>\n

Jerry and Mary Ann Bell<\/strong><\/a>: “<\/strong>The only way we could work it out was to let the Lord be the One in control.”<\/p>\n

Nelda and Glen Davenport<\/a>: “<\/strong>What did I think marriage would be like? Well, I never really gave it too much thought.”<\/p>\n

Walter and Hazel Douglas<\/a>: <\/strong>“Marriage has been a lot of fun.”<\/p>\n

Bill and Joan Fortin<\/a>:<\/strong> “If God could forgive me of all my sins, who am I not to forgive my husband?”<\/p>\n

Joseph and Mattie Foy<\/a>:<\/strong> “You don\u2019t get mad or critical because everyone has a way of their own.”<\/p>\n

Richard and Mary Jane Long<\/a>:<\/strong> “As we draw closer to God, we draw closer to each other.”<\/p>\n

Jack and Jody May<\/a>:<\/strong> “<\/em>She was worth giving up a football scholarship.”<\/p>\n

Charles and Betty Powell<\/a>:<\/strong> “Getting Married for me [Betty] was a means of getting away from home. My father was an alcoholic and he made it really rough on us.”<\/p>\n

Paul and Mona Sproull<\/a>:<\/strong> “I didn’t know how Paul could love God when he didn’t even know how to love me.”<\/p>\n

Bill and Jean Barber: “We’ve been through so much over the years\u2014good and bad.”<\/h2>\n

The Barbers, of San Marcos, Texas, have been married for 50 years. <\/em><\/p>\n

Bill:<\/strong> Jean and I had been married for about five years when life just caved in on us.\u00a0We were having serious financial problems and I felt like I had let down my \u201cQueen of the Hill.\u201d\u00a0One day, I sat down and wrote my wife (the cutest girl I ever knew) a note.\u00a0With tears in my eyes, I said that we probably should call it quits.\u00a0I thought I was a total failure, and I just didn\u2019t know what to do.<\/p>\n

But instead of giving up, I made one of the wisest decisions in my life:\u00a0I wadded up the note and tossed it into the trashcan.\u00a0Jean didn\u2019t even know about it until a few weeks ago\u2014right before our fiftieth anniversary.\u00a0How different my life would have been without my best friend!<\/p>\n

\u201cHang on,\u201d has my life\u2019s motto, and I\u2019ve learned that you can\u2019t solve a problem all at once.\u00a0But you can solve it a little at a time\u2014with God\u2019s help.<\/p>\n

Jean:<\/strong>\u00a0The thought of divorce never crossed my mind.\u00a0I come from an old pioneer family and I guess I\u2019ve always known that there would be some battles to fight in life.\u00a0Every marriage has its scars, and we\u2019ve been through so much over the years\u2014good and bad.\u00a0\u00a0 And Bill and I have learned that it takes two good forgivers to make one happy marriage.<\/p>\n

I married Bill because he made me laugh. He just made life more fun \u2026 more enjoyable and uplifting.\u00a0And he won\u2019t give up on anything.\u00a0He came to college on a basketball scholarship when he was just 16 years old.\u00a0After two years he was dropped from the scholarship because he wasn\u2019t tall enough.\u00a0So, he went into the Army and later went back to college\u2014he always finished what he started.<\/p>\n

Bill:<\/strong>\u00a0A few years into our marriage I started selling real estate.\u00a0Things were not going so well, and I was fired one afternoon.\u00a0The following day the same company offered me a job coordinating closing papers with title companies.\u00a0I accepted the position and went back to the basics.\u00a0I learned the real estate business from the bottom up.<\/p>\n

Jean:<\/strong>\u00a0This ended up being a great blessing.\u00a0Later, Bill again tried his hand at selling properties.\u00a0He not only became the top salesperson, but also the president <\/em>of the real estate board.\u00a0And, he became one of the top real estate appraisers in the entire country\u2014testifying in the courts of five states.<\/p>\n

A couple of years ago, Bill\u2019s positive attitude really helped.\u00a0He was backed over by a pickup truck and lived to tell about it.\u00a0Bill made jokes to the doctor in the emergency room and has kept that sense of humor that whole time.\u00a0That has helped me, as a caretaker, to face each day and the things I have to do for him. He has lots of friends and they love to be around him.<\/p>\n

Bill and I have learned that God has a plan for our lives, and when we realize that He\u2019s in control of all circumstances, it has a calming effect.<\/p>\n

Marriage secrets from the Barbers:<\/strong><\/p>\n