When I found out my daughter was communicating with a guy from South American that she had met online I was concerned.
In this episode of “Now Is the Time” Christina and I talk about why we allowed our daughter to continue with the relationship, get married, and move to South America.
We also answer the questions below:
- Why didn’t we make her get a college degree before marriage?
- Should young people be allowed to experience life before getting married?
- Aren’t you worried that your daughter is living so far away in a foreign country?
- Isn’t it better to marry someone from the same culture/country?
At the end we share with you some advice on how to prepare your children for marriage.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 46:12 — 42.3MB) | Embed
Paul Magnussen
December 4, 2017Thank you for sharing and for your wise words. I think if two people genuinely love each other and exhibit the maturity to handle marriage and honestly believe it’s God’s will for them to marry, then by all means let them get married as long as they are old enough to legally marry. I agree that our culture in America seems to have this notion that you have to go to college and get established in a career first before getting married. I wish there were some way Shelley and I could have married years before we did but it was not God’s time yet. We were both very different people back then and needed the experiences we had to shape us into the people we are today, and God knew that.
Also, I don’t believe in dating, I believe in courtship. You’re right, people should not enter into a romantic relationship unless they are prepared to consider marrying the other person. And then you need to allow sufficient time to really get to know each other. I think Naomi and Jorge did the right thing. They took the time to learn about each other. Something that is lacking in today’s dating scene in America. Also you need to ask yourself if you can accept this person just the way they are, because while there should be some growth in a marriage, you also can’t enter into it with the plan to change your spouse into what YOU want them to be.
Moreover, shame on those people that question marrying someone from a different culture or race, etc. Yes, there will be challenges, but if God brings two people together who are we to question that?
Caleb and Christina, I think you have already given your children the best education on marriage by setting a good example of what a marriage should be. By leading by example you have given them a model of what marriage should be, and have set the bar so high that they hopefully won’t want to settle for anything less. Bravo!
Caleb
December 4, 2017Well said Paul! Thanks for sharing those thoughts! As Christians we must approach marriage and preparation for marriage different than the world around us! I’m glad you agree!