As part of his school work my seven year-old son was asked to write about something beautiful. He chose to write about a building kit called K’nex. I will use his words to explain to you the beauty of K’nex: “I love K’nex. When you get a box all the pieces are inside and the directions to make something beautiful. When the pieces are all apart it looks hard to put together. It takes time and work to put it together. When it is done it looks beautiful and I am glad and I can use it to do what it’s meant to do.”
I read his words and also thought about something beautiful. I thought about marriage. When two get married they are like a box of K’nex. All the pieces of their two lives become mixed together into one and it indeed looks hard to put together. Marriage takes time and work but when it is done it looks beautiful and the two can be used to do what they together have been designed to do. That is, if it is done right.
I have watched my son build K’nex without following the directions. Through trial and error he builds and destroys. He exhausts time and energy trying his hardest to build the thing he desires. He gets frustrated and walks away leaving pieces to get lost. His effort diminishes. He quits and puts the box back on the shelf. With no instructions it is impossible to see what something has been designed to be. Thank God that he has given us the directions and the ability to see what marriage is designed to be in his Word. Thank God he is willing to step in and help us put the pieces back together.
Marriage can be one of the most beautiful and rewarding creations when it is built according to the directions. It is a gift given by God, designed to reflect His love and the desired relationship between Jesus Christ and the church. Attitude and effort matter when it comes to building a beautiful marriage. Following God’s instruction matters most.
“Receive instruction from his mouth, and lay up his words in your heart. If you return to the Almighty you will be built up…” -Job 22-23 (ESV)
