Why do things change?

My husband called a longtime friend of ours last night who lives in North Carolina. We hadn't talked to him or his wife in over a year, but wanted to ask them a question. After the initial "hey how are you" conversation, he shared with my husband that 1 year ago his wife of 30 years walked out on him and their two 14 year old children.

I can't express to you how deeply this affected me. They were such an amazing couple. Totally devoted to each other, their children, and their Lord. When my husband asked what had happened, he said he had no idea. Everything was great, they built a new home and were preparing to move in the following week. He came home from work, her bags were packed and said she was leaving. No explaination, simply walked out and they haven't heard from her since with the exception of the divorce papers that came soon after.

I sat last night wondering what had happened? What went wrong? What makes my marriage different than theirs that I am so happy and committed to it? I finally came to this conclusion. COMMITTMENT, AND FRIENDSHIP. First and foremost, my husband and I are both EQUALLY committed to our relationship and constantly working to keep it healthy and working. Second, we are each other's best friends. When something goes wrong, he is the one I call to talk to. When something great happens, he is the first one I want to share it with. When I get a funny email, he is the first one I forward it to.

I guess my ramblings for the day are this. If you want to have and keep a healthy marriage ... DON'T EVER LET YOUR GUARD DOWN. You need to be working on your relationship ALL THE TIME. Never take your spouse, your family or your relationship with them for granted. Or, much too easily it could end up just like our friends in NC.