As we look forward to the colorful beauty of fall, Dr. Gary Chapman explains to us what fall in a marriage looks like in his book, The Four Seasons of Marriage. I have truly enjoyed reading the first part and encourage you to have this book a part of your library.

I would classify fall as the most colorful and beautiful season of all. However, according to Dr. Chapman, that is not what fall brings to a marriage. Some emotions of fall are sadness, apprehension, and rejection. Some words used to identify a fall season is uncertainty, insecurity, fear, overwhelmed, confused, burn out, stressful, dejected, and unappreciated just to name a few.

The main characteristic of fall is CHANGE. We can miss the change in our marriage when we are not in tune with one another. One day we look up and our marriage is in the middle of fall. We often neglect our marriage with day to day routines that will ultimately drive us apart. We become roommates instead of partners.

Our attitude in the fall reflects the concern about the state of our marriage and the uncertainty as to where it is going. Whether our marriage moves from fall to winter or from fall to spring depends on the actions we choose to take.
When we recognize we’ve neglected to nurture and feed our marriage, this should be the time we take action to reverse the neglect. In this season of our marriage, if we have not been applying the love languages, this is the time to start. When we demonstrate the love language of our spouse, it says that we love them in a way that is recognizable. The purpose of winter and fall is to be a wake-up call to get our marriage back on track to grow.

I pray you have enjoyed these moments of marital reflection. I pray, whatever season your marriage may be in, God will strengthen and bless abundantly. Most of all, I pray for marital maturation.

Thank you for sharing…A MOMENT WITH MELISSA!