Like most people I have had thousands of nice conversations with others. Had I thought about it, many of these would have given a great opportunity to talk about Christ. I didn’t for a variety of reasons. When I was playing golf regularly there was another person in the golf cart. We could talk about anything we wanted.
At some point I should have said something that might have built even more significant relationships with some of them. As our conversation meandered about golf, weather, the Club, latest news, I should have stopped at some point, looked him in the eye and said: “Isn’t it time?” If he asked “Time for what?” I could say: “Time we stopped talking about trivial things and started talking about what’s going on in your life and mine. Isn’t it time we became brothers in Christ?” This would have taken courage to challenge another person to fight for each other’s spiritual and relational growth. I don’t know if I would have had this kind of courage then. Also at that time I did not know Jesus.
I have learned since that unless I have the courage to talk to others about faith, their level of faith will continue to be unknown to me. Also I have learned but not put into practice what might have been done to make our marriage even more joyful. Like most couples, there were times when we may have briefly wished that we were not married. Irritations and petty grievances creep in. We managed to skate over these but not without some sorrow and unnecessary grief.
Whenever we came to a time when we were in disagreement on something, or when we just didn’t like what the other was doing we should have stopped and talked it out. Our peace of mind suffered unnecessarily. There is seldom a problem in marriage between two people who are normal, [who do not have serious emotional problems] that cannot be straightened out. I should have said: “Isn’t it time we talked about this instead of letting it fester? Our marriage is too important to have it hurt by our unwillingness to discuss our differences.” She might have been too surprised to respond, but if I had done this, I believe it would have helped.
Instead, based on the divorce rate that hovers around fifty percent, few couples try hard enough to resolve their problems. Some just look at the “greener grass” that they might find in another relationship. It takes courage to fight for a marriage but there are many resources. We could turn to another couple we trust and lay it out to them. Perhaps they have had similar problems and it might also help them . There are marriage counselors, and going to a marriage retreat could be immensely helpful. Anita and I went to one after 57 years of marriage, not because we thought we needed it, but for the experience. There were couples that really did need to be there and they were helped. One couple admitted that their next stop would be a divorce court. They reconciled their differences in individual group counseling meetings and left in joy.
Much can be gained by just stopping our mad dash though life and talking about what really matters. Our life on earth is brief compared with the life of our real self - our soul and spirit that lives forever. The eternal residence we choose or do not choose is vitally important. Without our choosing Jesus as our Lord and Savior we then will spend eternity with Satan in hell. The fear of this was what first made me resolve to avoid it by pledging my life to our Lord. Soon after that I found the real joy of being a child of God. So I am thankful for the scare I first had, but no longer think of it. I know that the Lord is with me all the time and this gives comfort beyond description. Isn’t it time to spend more time with Him?