Jack and Pearl were slaves. Jack awoke every morning with but one mission: to serve his master. Pearl stood by her man for better or worse. There were some days that Jack didn't feel as well as others, yet he arose to be at his master's beckoned call. Pearl was right beside Jack in sickness and in health. Jack went where his master told him, Pearl by his side. If the master said go to the right, even though Jack had an inclination to go left, he went right with Pearl at his side. Pearl never tried to lead Jack, she went where he did. If the master said go here, and Jack desired to go there, a little nudge from Pearl in the right direction would keep him on the right path. Jack and Pearl were not a married couple, they were mules.

Every married person is familiar with those words, "until death do you part." Vows are taken to live with each other in sickness and in health, for better or for worse. In spite of these vows, today in America nearly one half of all marriages end in divorce. The "carnal mindset" in America today has not only paved the road for all types of sin to become accepted, but has allowed those sins to be responsible for the breakdown of the family and for the high divorce rates that we now see.

Marriage was the first institution ordained by God. God united man and woman even before the priesthood. And, though there was divorce in the Old Testament, divorce was not something that Jesus condoned. Jesus gave one reason for divorce: sexual immorality. In His sermon on the mountain Jesus said, "Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery" (Matthew 5:31-32).

America has let all types of sexual immorality become mainstream. And, many Americans are drinking from this immoral fountain. The liberal attitudes that prevail in America today threaten to weaken the institution of marriage. When marriages begin to have trouble, instead of seeking the counsel of God, couples turn to the ways of the world. They drink from the wrong fountain. They drink from the fountain of that world that does not satisfy.

One adulterous affair leads to another. Husbands seek the comfort of a prostitute. The first visit doesn't satisfy; instead it leads only to the second visit. Pornographic magazines and videos lead only to self-gratification and the natural relations with the wife are foregone, replaced with fantasies that can never satisfy. Instead of drinking from a fountain that satisfies, many people continue to drink from the fountain of the world and it keeps them wanting more until it ends up being their undoing.

Many couples seek material gain as a way of measuring the success of their marriage. A spouse will spend endless hours and days away from the other to gain more money as a way of buying into happiness. The happiness they buy is only short lived as that money can fade away. They seek mansions, high priced cars, and all types of "earthly" treasures instead of "[laying] up for [themselves] treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:20-21).

America threatens to weaken the institution of marriage even more by allowing the union of same sex couples. Even in institutions that claim to be of God, same sex marriages, a direct conflict with the word of God, are recognized and blessed. Husbands and wives that have been married in the eyes of God, leave each other for unnatural relationships with others of the same sex. The ungodly union of the sodomite threatens to be put on even keel with the God sanctioned union of a man and a woman.

In John chapter 4:5-26, Jesus meets a woman at the well. This woman has had five husbands and the man she is with now is not a husband. She has been in five relationships, and now in the sixth still trying to find happiness. This woman is drinking from the fountain of the world. She is searching to find something that is not to be found. She is thirsting for something she can not attain by her own means. Each time she finds something she is not fulfilled and needs more. She went through five husbands, and now is with the sixth man.

But in verses 10 through 13 Jesus gives her the key to fulfillment. Jesus tells her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water" (John 4:10). Jesus goes on to tell her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life" (John 4:13-14).

Today many relationships are built on worldly things. Be they wealth, success, or whatever other worldly temptation, these marriages are not built on the one thing that will satisfy. When they get in one relationship they are not satisfied so they look to another, still building on the wrong principles.

For relationships to be successful they have to be built on the water that satisfies. Remember the vows, "for better or worse." When it gets worse, and it can, too many couples begin to drink form that fountain of the world. Some unite with prostitutes, knowing the Bible teachings, "You shall not commit adultery" (Exodus 20:14). Many turn to homosexuality, which is again in direct opposition to the Bible's teaching, "If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination" (Leviticus 20:13). Many turn to their work and try to amass great amounts of money, most of us are taught to measure a man's success by the amount of money he has, knowing that "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (1 Timothy 6:10). People turn to every kind of vice they can find, yet very few turn to the one place where they will get fulfillment, Jesus Christ.

Jesus told the woman at the well that whoever drinks the water he gives will never thirst again and will be satisfied! Married people need to set their focus on Jesus Christ. Instead of following the way of the world, they need to begin drinking the water that Jesus gives water that will lead to satisfaction and fulfillment. The focus of all lives should be on Jesus Christ. In every aspect of life it should be on His teachings. "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31). If married couples were to turn and live for the one who ordained their marriage, and put their focus on Him, then we could stop this D-I-V-O-R-C-E.

Bobby Cohoon

Poplar Branch, North Carolina, USA