Month: July 2009

Tips for a Happy Marriage

On By Betty OwensIn Marriage, Memories, Shower, Wedding

I went to a wedding shower the other day. It brought back fond memories of my wedding shower, where I received index cards with tips for a happy marriage written on them. Of course there were the usual ones, the common sense ones and the ones that read like the proverbs of Solomon.


Here are a few that I found helpful:

  • Don’t spend too much time together.
  • Spend as much time together as possible.
  • Be your own person.
  • Submit yourself to him. He is your master.

Well, maybe not so much, but here are some I really did like:

  • Laugh. A lot.
  • Never stop dating.
  • Make him think he’s special.

And then I added one:

  • When there’s something you really want to do, make him think it’s his idea.

So, what’s the secret to a long and happy marriage? There are no set rules, because everyone is different. But faithfulness, love, kindness, honor, interest, desire, those are all good words…and humor helps. Laugh—a lot!

Defeated By A Rumor!

On By Betty OwensIn Assyrian, Isaiah, Jerusalem, Kings, Rabshekah, rumor

Sometimes, we are defeated by a rumor. This happened in I Kings 19:7 (repeated in Isaiah 37:7) to a powerful Assyrian leader called a Rabshekah. He heard a rumor, returned home and was later killed there. This was the man who stood outside the walls of Jerusalem, shouting and trying to scare the inhabitants into surrender.

How often do we hear a rumor and run? Speaking for myself, more often than I like to think. The world is sometimes a very scary place, but for those who put their trust in the Lord, peace is only a breath or a heartbeat away. Though you may suffer immediate alarm in a given situation, take a deep breath and remember. Greater is He that is in me, than he that is in the world (I John 4:4).

It Ended With a Gunshot

On By Betty OwensIn 2009, July 7, Standoff in Jeffersontown KY

A man shot himself at my desk this week. It came at the end of a twelve-hour standoff with police, during which he held the owner of the company hostage.

Beyond the shock, life goes on. I returned to work two days later to find a bare concrete floor because the carpeting had been ripped out. All of my things had been cleaned and moved out of the office. It was my job to put it all back.

I had to replace a few things that could not be cleaned. I had to go through papers sleeved in plastic and copy what was important. The blood stains on the originals were already turning brown.

It was impossible to get through all of this without thinking of the man who died there and to grieve for him and his loved ones. I did not know him and I was not there when he decided to camp out in my office. It simply made sense to him to be there.

Perhaps someday, I will be able to write more about this, but for now, the shock is too great.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Psalm 23: 4, NIV