About Marriage Part 4

Teachable Woman Podcast

Reverends Michele Owes and Diana Cherry

About Marriage Part 4

Rev. Michele Owes: [00:00:00] Welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome. Welcome to the Teachable Woman Podcast. We're excited to be with you today. I am Reverend Michelle Oates. I am with Reverend Mrs. Deanna P. Cherry, and together we are teachers of good things. Mrs. Cherry, please say hello to our podcast family and friends

Rev. Diana Cherry: podcast family. I pray that all of you are safe and that you've not been overly challenged by weather situations that are occurring around the country and the world, and I pray that you're focused, directioned, and ready to hear from God as we share with you what thus sayeth the Lord as teachers of good things

Rev. Michele Owes: Amen. We have been talking about what to know before you get married, and Mrs. Cherry was sharing some of the wonderful tidbits from her book, and she may drop a few more jewels tonight. And [00:01:00] in addition to that, we've been talking about just some basic things about marriage that we wanted to share with you.

So tonight I want us to start with the fact that the very first miracle that Jesus performed was at a wedding feast. And so I believe that that is a tremendous testament to how important God sees the marriage, in that Jesus' first miracle was at the wedding ceremony. And what I love about the fact that Jesus took something that was simple and basic and plain, which was water, and He turned it into a wine that the guests said was so good that He had saved the best for last.

And I am prayerful that for those of us who are considering marriage or those of us who are already married, that-- and we're in the thick of it all, that we will recognize that when things are not going as well as we would like for them to go, if they're not as spicy or as [00:02:00] exciting or when it feels like it's getting to be a little bit of the doldrums, that we will remember that God can take something simple and turn it into fine wine.

He can take the water of our marriage and turn it into fine wine. The other thing I think that was beautiful is that His mother, Mary, was at the feast. And when she learned that they didn't have any wine, she went to Jesus as if to say, "Son, you can do something about this." And He was like, "Listen, it's not my time yet.

It-- my time has not yet come. Don't bother me," in that sense. And what she did... Well, He told them to move the water pots. But, uh, but she also went to the servants and she said, "Do whatever He says." And I think when we get in difficult positions in our marriage, it comes back to that thing that Mary said. Did we do whatever Jesus said in order for our marriage to work?

Are we [00:03:00] trying to get somewhere or catapult our relationship to a place? Are we trying to skip the basic steps that God has asked us to have one for another, and we're trying to catapult to some place that maybe we've imagined from something we saw on television or something in a magazine. But we have not yet done what the Lord said about marriage.

And so I want to just talk about that for a little bit, Miss Cherry. What, what are your thoughts on Jesus turning the water to wine and what He can do in our marriages if we allow Him?

Rev. Diana Cherry: was en- en- enjoying listening to you. I was over I was on the other coast just, "Yeah, go, preach, preach." You know, I,

Rev. Michele Owes: back, come back.

Rev. Diana Cherry: I always found it interesting that the first miracle was at a wedding. And to me it says that, you know, weddings are of God, marriage is of God. And, uh, the fact that He was there and He performed His first miracle at a wedding, I think it, uh, at a marriage [00:04:00] ceremony, I think is, um, I think it's a powerful statement of what marriage means to Him, how, you know, how He regards marriage. But certainly if Jesus could turn water into wine, it should encourage us to know that He can turn these minor little issues that we have, that we're at each other's throats, uh, one of those turbulent days that we have. If He could come and do that at a marriage ceremony, He can certainly intervene in our marriages and bring peace in the middle of turmoil and give us strength to go through when things are not as lovey-dovey and cuddly-cuddly as they, uh, you know, as they might have been on the day before. just for us to have patience with each other, whatever it is,

Rev. Michele Owes: me

Rev. Diana Cherry: to pass. Whatever situations we

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: they came to pass. And there are no issues that are so great or so big that we should allow ourselves to be [00:05:00] devastated. And you know, I, I just believe that if we don't learn how to handle little challenges in life, we're never going to be strong enough to handle, uh, something really big when it happens.

And we have to live our lives, I think, every day, um, just handling little things and not allowing any little thing to just grow and fester because that thing will grow and it will multiply and it can be a big issue of our lives. So I think, uh, take a lesson from the, um, blessing of the, of the water and turning it into wine that Jesus, Jesus will get involved in the l- l- so-called insignificant or little things of our marriages to make sure that things are smoothed out. So whatever it is that we're going through, just know that God is with us, Jesus is with us, we just have to, um, seek His face, seek His will, and do His will. And if we do that, I just firmly believe that He'll be, um, the [00:06:00] giver of that peace that passes all understanding because all marriages are going to have some turmoil we just have to really seek the Lord and trust Him to be that, that peace, to be that balm in Gilead when we need it, and He will be.

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes. I think another beautiful thing in this story is that Mary went to Jesus to say, "Hey, you can do something." But Jesus didn't think it was His time. He didn't think He was able. At least His response to her said that it was not His time, but He went forward to give them instructions. And we might be feeling like Jesus, that you know what?

This is not the time. The Lord cannot fix this for us, and, you know, this is not the kind of thing that He gets involved in, and this is... You know, we have ideas of what we think the Lord can work and, and what He can solve and, and what He can fix, [00:07:00] and so we limit Him to what we might consider, quote, "the big things" when we've been instructed through scripture to cast all of our cares upon Him because He cares for us.

We've been instructed through scripture that, you know, some trust in horses and some trust in chariots, but we will remember the name of the Lord God. In other words, these mighty powers or people or institutions or processes outside of us that we trust in, you know, what we should really be trusting in is the Lord and who, that's who we should be trusting in.

So I think that's a beautiful thing as well, that Jesus went ahead and did what needed to be done. And there are some things that you and I have to do in the marriage. We may not feel like we want to, that we're ready to, or that we can, but we just have to go on and start the process and look and see [00:08:00] what God will do.

So I believe that, you know, marriage, God, uh, the Bible tells us in Hebrews 13:4 that marriage is honorable. Honorable meaning valuable, meaning costly, meaning of, of, you know, it has-- It's of great interest, and there's been a great deposit that has gone into getting us to the married state. Think about the amount of time and money and energy that it took to get us to the altar, and then even beyond the altar, the investment that is consistently required to have a good marriage.

And so the Lord considers the marriage an honorable

Rev. Diana Cherry: Yes

Rev. Michele Owes: and I don't know if we consider our marriage as honorable. I think it's sometimes we think it's just somebody that we love that loves us, but not that our marriage is to honor

Rev. Diana Cherry: Yeah.

Rev. Michele Owes: Lord.

Rev. Diana Cherry: why counseling is so [00:09:00] important beforehand so that you can go through all of those definitions and go through all of the, the scriptures that teach us, uh, y- you know, that will teach us what to expect in marriage and what marriage is and how we are to regard one another. And it's essential that we... It is essential, essential that we go through a premarital class, not just what my husband and I went through about 20 minutes to a half an hour with our pastor when he said, "You know, uh, you're going to have to learn how to get along together and, you know, it's going to be hard, but you'll make it." You know, I mean, absolutely nothing of value. I, I really appreciate the fact that in our ministry we do not take marriage lightly, but we prepare

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: you have two imperfect people And you are asking those two imperfect individuals to come together and become one, and once they come together, they're supposed to be stuck like [00:10:00] glue. That's pretty close contact,

Rev. Michele Owes: Right.

Rev. Diana Cherry: and if we don't

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: or what to do when s- things start pulling against that glue, against that contact, we, you know,

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah

Rev. Diana Cherry: have, uh, we can have emotional failure. And so it's, it's

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: we understand no marriage is perfect, no matter how much counseling you receive, you're still going to have issues. But at least by going through the counseling, you should be prepared to deal with the issues. And we always encouraged our members, um, to look back over their notes and, uh, read about all those things that you wrote when you were hoping to be Ms.

or Mister. And now that you are

Rev. Michele Owes: When you were hopeful.

Rev. Diana Cherry: things that you liked. I liked his eyes, I liked his teeth, I liked little behind. you know, all those little likes. when you get down and, and you... the two become one, some

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah.

Rev. Diana Cherry: things that, some of the things that you like [00:11:00] most become the biggest irritants. And what we always

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes. Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: counseling, we tried to uncover everything. e- everything that the couple would give as a positive, my husband would present a negative apart of that. uh,

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah

Rev. Diana Cherry: our couples were, um, really prepared for the marriage state. But no matter how prepared you are, it's still work. It's still a challenge. It's still a struggle.

Rev. Michele Owes: is.

Rev. Diana Cherry: But

Rev. Michele Owes: It is

Rev. Diana Cherry: that you love doing because you're doing it together, 'cause you're going to struggle whether you're married

Rev. Michele Owes: It's worth it.

Rev. Diana Cherry: And I know one of the things

Rev. Michele Owes: That's right

Rev. Diana Cherry: wanted us to talk about were things that we really liked about being married and things that we didn't like so much about being married. I want you, I want to encourage those of you who are married, you're going to have struggles, at least when you're married, you have

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah

Rev. Diana Cherry: share those [00:12:00] struggles with. It could

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes.

Rev. Diana Cherry: a degree of joy knowing that that's a person that... You know when the Bible says the two become one, they were naked and they were not a- afraid or not ashamed?

Rev. Michele Owes: Ashamed, yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: that two people six months ago, they never knew each other Then they get married

Rev. Michele Owes: Wow

Rev. Diana Cherry: of a sudden they get naked in front of each other. I think that's an incredible I, to me, that was one of the most... I'm like, you know, am I really supposed to do this?" me, that is just so amazing how you can be two individuals, you get married, and instantly you become one, and, and no shame, you know, because he's yours and you're his, and that gets rid of all the shame. It really is a miracle. Marriage is a miracle.

Rev. Michele Owes: It is. It is. It's a mystical [00:13:00] union according to the scripture, which means we don't have anything to do with it, really. We just obey. Um, I also wanted to share that it is so important that you attend, if you are married, that you attend marriage enrichment meetings at your church every time they have them.

Do not miss. I don't care what's going on, find a way to get to those because those meetings will help keep you and sustain you. And if you have not married yet, uh, make sure that you go through premarital counseling or, uh, before you say I do and get all these things worked out and think about and plan about, uh, before you enter into union with one another.

If your church offers a marriage retreat, go. Be there every year. Invest in your marriage. Some of us do more work on our [00:14:00] stocks than we do on our marriages. Stop that. B- you have got to invest in that marriage. And, and that's where you do it, by making sure you put the-- when you hear the church announcements on when marriage enrichment meeting is going to be, put it on the calendar.

Nobody gets to break the meeting because we're going. When there's a marriage enrichment retreat, start saving for it early 'cause we're going. This is what we're doing. We may not get to the Dominican Republic this year, baby. We may not get anywhere else because we've got to work on our marriage. And make sure that if you have not had premarital counseling, that you do so, so that you can be prepared.

Um, marriage is God's idea and, and you cannot step in His arena and think it's going to work based on your thinking, because the scriptures make it very clear to us that God's thoughts are not our thoughts and His ways are not our ways. So whatever it is you're thinking, God's not thinking that way.

Rev. Diana Cherry: Okay[00:15:00]

Rev. Michele Owes: Whatever ways you have, those are not His ways. So you, you batting zero walking into this thing, and if we don't walk in with the Lord and stay with Him while we're in it, I, I am here to tell you the Lord saved my marriage many a day Because mostly He saved my thinking.

Rev. Diana Cherry: That's it

Rev. Michele Owes: He, He, He changed my mind. He renewed it.

And as a result of Him renewing my mind, I could be a married woman because I will be honest, at the initial onset, I always had those thoughts, "Well, hey, I could just return to my little high-rise apartment." I was, you know, I was living pretty good. I was doing well by myself. I don't have to put up with this.

These were my thoughts, right? And God was letting me know that, you know, it really wasn't, uh, me putting up with anything. It was what I was dishing out. So, you know, a lot of what you will go to God about when you think your husband has a problem, if you stay there long enough, He'll [00:16:00] let you know it's probably you with the problem.

Um, not to say that husbands are perfect, don't get me wrong. But because as the wife you will be setting the tone for the home, if you will allow God to direct you in your thoughts and in your actions, then you will be able to have what God desires for you. If you don't give Him the right to do that, then you're going to have what you have 'cause you made it.

And the scriptures tell us that a wise woman builds her house, but the foolish plucketh it down with her own hands. And a lot of us, without knowing it, have become foolish women, and we're plucking it down with our own hands. And we don't even know we're doing it because we're not allowing the Lord to guide us

Rev. Diana Cherry: Boy, that was good. I was, I was getting real blessed. I was like, you know, what you're saying, it's so good and it's so true, and w- we just have to,

Rev. Michele Owes: Praise the Lord

Rev. Diana Cherry: take the time, make the commitment to go through the premarital class, to [00:17:00] stay in marriage enrichment classes, and go on the marriage retreats. Your marriage is important, and the marriage is supposed to, uh, glorify God. And all of us who are

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: in marriage, we have a responsibility to let the world know how glorious the institution of

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah

Rev. Diana Cherry: by how we live in it. And I know my husband used to, uh, teach us that there is no greater natural fulfillment On earth than being married, being in, in the, being institutionalized in marriage. It is an institution, but

Rev. Michele Owes: No feet.

Rev. Diana Cherry: is where, it is where we get maximum, uh, natural fulfillment in, in, in life. You know, it's, it's a place where we're, we're complete in Jesus and a place where we're really complete in our husbands because the Bible says we're to put on our husbands. [00:18:00] And that's not a put down.

That's, uh, that's something that God called little me and little you that we could make an impact in the life of a man who's our husband and make his life better and help him to reach God's plan for his life. That is an awesome, an

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: thing. And, and the responsibility of the wife is to care for the needs of the husband, and the responsibility of the husband is to care for the needs of the wife. And it... And, and if you're unmarried, you're supposed to be caring for the things of the Lord. And so when you get married, your primary, uh, responsibility, my primary responsibility really was to care for the things of my husband, how I could please him. I no longer had the opportunity to care just solely for the things of the Lord, how I could please the Lord. Because my husband became my number one priority. I know that, um, especially nowadays people don't think like that. [00:19:00] I, we have to stick with what God says. We have to stick with what the Word of

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: us. And it doesn't make any difference what anybody else thinks or says or what society says or what psychology says, but we are Bible-believing people and we live the Word of God. And so I firmly believe that the apex of fulfillment our human life is in marriage. You, you cannot, you cannot reach great a fulfillment in any other stage, um, because either married or unmarried. And you, you... I don't believe that you can reach that maximum stage of fulfillment in any other area but in marriage.

One man to one woman Because God made one man, two spec- two genders, and he went inside that one man, that one species, male man, and he took that [00:20:00] woman, female out, and he took that male, male man out. so in order for us to reach that maximum fulfillment again, we come back together as one, then we can work together, we can run together, we can have fun

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes.

Rev. Diana Cherry: can

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes

Rev. Diana Cherry: together, we can build a family together.

Rev. Michele Owes: Right

Rev. Diana Cherry: and the togetherness is one of the most important aspects of a marriage. You know, if you're going to be institutionalized, you

Rev. Michele Owes: I agree

Rev. Diana Cherry: enjoy it. you are institutionalized,

Rev. Michele Owes: If you're going to be in there together, right?

Rev. Diana Cherry: You are

Rev. Michele Owes: I think, uh, a- another beautiful piece of this, Mrs. Cherry, is that you have the opportunity and, and you, you never know who's watching. And I have received so many comments on what people gained from the relationship that I had with my husband, and we never once sat down and talked with them.

We never-- I mean, it was just observing. [00:21:00] And people from their observation of us... I, I remember one time after service had ended and we were coming down, and we stopped at the end of the pulpit and we kissed each other, and the church erupted and, and we thought people were leaving. But the church erupted in, in claps and yay, yay, yay because they wanted to see their pastor, pastor and wife expressing emotion one toward the other.

Now, we always held hands and, you know, we would hug, but you know, we, we had joy while we served, and we had joy one with another. And so, but you never know that people are watching you to this extent. Uh, and you know, and, and someone had said to me, "You know, every time we saw the two of you, you were always smiling.

You always had nice and pleasant things to say to people." You just... Who's watching? I have no idea. All I'm doing is living, right? Doing my job to do what God would have me [00:22:00] to do. But the point is, Mrs. Cherry, you all taught us this, that when you marry a man, you are the only one who has the right to serve him in an intimate manner.

It is your responsibility. And I always say, if you're going to serve this way, have some fun while you're doing it. I mean, wives, enjoy being intimate with your husbands. If you're having some issues with how things feel today, maybe the body doesn't work the way that it used to, do some research. We use that phone and internet to look up everything.

Get some help for yourself in those natural ways to make sure that you can still enjoy intimacy with your husband. You also have a responsibility to respect him in how you talk to him, what you say to him. Your tone and your delivery sets the tone for the [00:23:00] whole house. And if you mind those things God will be able to be honored in the relationship.

We cannot, we cannot consider our husbands our servants. And some women do, and some women are, are just disrespectful.

Rev. Diana Cherry: Yes

Rev. Michele Owes: Uh, and let's just be clear, sometimes women can just be plain old disrespectful. But right. But he's, he's not your servant. He is God's child, just as you are God's child. And God is not pleased when anybody, uh, mistreats His children.

You know, uh, as it relates to the children of Israel, He said, "I have heard, I have seen, and I have come down to deliver." Now, don't make God come down

Rev. Diana Cherry: Right, 'cause we will

Rev. Michele Owes: 'cause we misbehaving. Because He's seen the afflictions of His people by reason of their taskmaster. He has heard their cry and their tears, [00:24:00] and He will come down.

And the way He comes down may not be the way you think He will, but He, He will address the issue. If you don't get yourself together, missy, He will address the issue. So don't make God come down for that. Let Him come down to bless you, not to correct you.

Rev. Diana Cherry: if you are marriage, be grateful. Those of us who've lost

Rev. Michele Owes: Yes.

Rev. Diana Cherry: testify to the fact that, uh, it's a very hurtful thing to have had someone that you, you know, in love with and you shared your life with and for them to have left before you. It, it's a hurtful thing. So if you have a mate,

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah.

Rev. Diana Cherry: the mate that you have

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah

Rev. Diana Cherry: the best that you can to be the best that you can, to be the best wife or husband that you can be because you are in an institution. It is an institution founded by God, approved of by God, and, uh, enjoy your marriage. Don't be married and [00:25:00] then have

Rev. Michele Owes: Amen

Rev. Diana Cherry: in it. Work on it. You can do it. You

Rev. Michele Owes: That's right. That's right.

Rev. Diana Cherry: of us have had, had issues, sometimes without answers. But whatever the issues

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah

Rev. Diana Cherry: know, just work on your marriage because it's worth working on. Yeah

Rev. Michele Owes: It is. And I think that's a key statement, Ms. Cherry. It's worth it. What we're building with one another is worth it, and it's worth it for the kingdom of God. It is, it's currency for the kingdom. And we are, uh, allowing something that we agreed to do because nobody put a shotgun to our head, at least hopefully most of you didn't have a shotgun to your head to go to that altar and say that you do.

This is something that you chose to do, and God can get honor out of what you chose to do because He said marriage is an honorable estate. And so we just want to make sure that we remember that our marriage is to honor God. [00:26:00] And as long as we treat marriage like we're honoring God, and then when things get a little tough, just remember Jesus was able to turn the water to wine, and we can just ask Him to come on in and turn whatever is draining us, the like a water drip, drip or drain that's-- Turn into wine, Lord.

Just make it good for the kingdom of God, and He

Rev. Diana Cherry: Yes.

Rev. Michele Owes: do that.

Rev. Diana Cherry: it good

Rev. Michele Owes: Now, Mrs. Cherry, we've got a couple of minutes left. Let's say one thing that we loved about being married.

Rev. Diana Cherry: thought,

Rev. Michele Owes: You go first.

Rev. Diana Cherry: I thought I had escaped it. You know, when you told me you were going to ask that, I was thinking, thinking, thinking, thinking, and trying to think of just one thing that was just outstanding, and I think I, I just enjoyed the togetherness of being, you know, having my husband.

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah

Rev. Diana Cherry: And, and the thing that I miss most now is just his presence. You know, um, he didn't have to be in my physical presence, but I knew he was there. I, and I think that, uh, I enjoyed the presence of my husband [00:27:00] so much. Um, his friendship, his counsel, I just knew he was always there. I knew I could always, uh, go to him for anything, and that was so comforting. So that, that's one thing that I just loved being, in being married, and I don't think I could ever get that kind of relationship again with anyone else.

I could a person's, uh, fellowship or friendship, but their presence, you know? Naked and unashamed, and naked and unafraid, just, you know, he was there, you know? He was

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah.

Rev. Diana Cherry: And

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah.

Rev. Diana Cherry: over in his bathroom, 'cause we had separate, um, um, bathrooms, and I, and I'd just see him there putting his eye drops in and closing his eyes, you know, and taking the appropriate number of counts to g- for the, uh, glaucoma drops to work and stuff like that. his presence, I just, I enjoyed the fact that I

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah

Rev. Diana Cherry: not alone, that I had my husband.

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah. That's beautiful. You know, um, Mrs. Cherry mentioned [00:28:00] that, uh, the pain of, you know, becoming a widow, if you will. Uh, I want to say that it is a pain that never goes away, but you learn to live with it. You, you learn to make the necessary adjustments. It, it, it is not as, as sharp and as pronounced as in the early days as time goes on, but it is still, it's, it's something that you carry with you.

Uh, and not as a heavyweight, but a part of your being because someone that you were one with is now gone. And just the whole separation of it all is, is a difficult thing. It's like divorce is very difficult because that is the two that became one flesh you're separating. But, uh, you know, as Mrs. Cherry told us before, it's a lot different because, you know, he won't be showing up at the baby showers and the family dinners.

Rev. Diana Cherry: No

Rev. Michele Owes: He won't be showing up. Uh, but one of the things that I enjoyed the most about my husband was that he chose me

Rev. Diana Cherry: That's [00:29:00] good.

Rev. Michele Owes: He chose me. As my, the, you know, the scriptures say that we didn't choose God, He chose us. And my husband chose me. And in the choosing of me, it was the good, the bad, the indifferent, the I, I have got to teach her about this. I, I better show her a more excellent way. He chose me.

Rev. Diana Cherry: Mm-hmm.

Rev. Michele Owes: And, um, he never went back on his choice.

And it was not always easy to keep that choice, but he chose me. And he looked toward not only who I needed him to be in Christ Jesus, but the things that I needed in the natural. Uh, I would, I would share with, I shared with Mrs. Cherry that I never realized how much my husband was a part of my physical activity, and that whenever I felt like, you know, I was gaining too much weight or, or I just, I needed to work out more, he would come up with a plan.

We're on bicycles now. We're [00:30:00] riding 10 miles a week, or we're getting to 20 miles a week, or we're, we're doing a walk, or we're going to the university and we're walking the bleachers and we're running the track, or we're running the neighborhood, or... He always came up with something that we could do. Uh, when I homeschooled, he was the gym teacher and I was right out there doing all the stuff he was teaching the children how to do because he was an athlete.

And so I never really recognized how much he contributed to my physical health until he was gone. And, um, I still do things, but I don't do them with the intensity, with the enjoyment. Um, you know, when we rode bicycles, he always saved some of his water for me, and he was always looking back to make sure that I was there.

He drove, he rode a 26-speed and I had like a little mountain bike. We were still going in the same direction, but he could get there faster. But he was always looking out for me. And so that is [00:31:00] what I enjoyed the most about being married, uh, to my husband, is that he chose me and he never went back on his selection.

Rev. Diana Cherry: That's wonderful. That's a wonderful thing.

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah.

Rev. Diana Cherry: Yeah. My,

Rev. Michele Owes: It is.

Rev. Diana Cherry: too.

Rev. Michele Owes: Oh. Amen.

Rev. Diana Cherry: and he,

Rev. Michele Owes: that's a wonderful thing. And look at the benefit. Look at the benefit

Rev. Diana Cherry: with me

Rev. Michele Owes: If you all could see Mrs. Cherry's face while she's saying that. It's like she is in absolute shock that he did that. We all are, Miss Cherry, that our husbands stay with us through all of the issues of our life. But I will say this. Think about this, Mrs. Cherry. Your husband's choice of you and to stay with you, really, my husband and I, we were the benefit of that Coming into the ministry, in the ministry, growing up in the ministry, attending the marriage enrichments, attending the, uh, services on Sundays and Tuesdays.

[00:32:00] And our marriage stayed together because you and he worked on making your marriage stay together under the word of God. And there are thousands of couples that are like us. So the, the, the deposit that the two of you left in the earth on how to be married, we're benefactors of that deposit. And so I'ma just say thank you.

And I'ma say thank you for all of us

Rev. Diana Cherry: be the glory.

Rev. Michele Owes: who may have never had a chance.

Rev. Diana Cherry: To God be the

Rev. Michele Owes: Yeah, I'm sure that many people thanked you after the marriage retreats. I was at every marriage retreat you all had, even with children. You know, we found somebody for those weekends because my husband and I were working on staying together.

We were working on investing in the marriage that God trusted us with. And we, we were really clear after the first year that we had no tools.

We thought we did, but we didn't have any tools. Uh, and so we went where [00:33:00] we could get help on a regular basis

Rev. Diana Cherry: Well

Rev. Michele Owes: All right. Well, I hope you enjoyed today's podcast. I really did.

Rev. Diana Cherry: Yeah

Rev. Michele Owes: Well, we will see you on our very next podcast. Thank you so much for being with us. Thank you for allowing us to enter your homes, ride with you in the car. Thank you for sharing us with your friends. Thank you for listening, re-listening, and sharing the podcast. Thank you for subscribing on our YouTube channel at Teachable Woman, and thank you for being you.

We'll talk to you on our next podcast

Rev. Diana Cherry: God bless. Good night