Marriage was designed by God as a part of his good plan for his created people. He saw Adam alone in the garden at the start of creation and quickly realized Adam needed a partner, friend, and someone to share life with. As a result, he created Eve and said she was good, and that it was good for them to be together. After this first God-ordained union of man and woman, marriage, was created. God gave them the instruction to “leave your father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24).

As sin entered the world, the corruption of this God-created partnership began. After Adam and Eve were banished from the garden, God also declared that strife would now be a part of the marriage relationship. The wife would desire her husband and he would rule over her (Genesis 3:16). Ever since we have seen women struggle under patriarchy and enjoy less freedom in our world than their male counterparts. The push and pull between the sexes continues. Thankfully, when we accept God as our Savior, he empowers us to live beyond the curse and brings unity to our relationships.

How do we assess if our marriage is in God’s will? That’s a big question, and it’s so easy for us to become blindsided by each of our sinful natures that we lose track of God’s original mission, which was for marriage to be an equal partnership filled with God’s love. Here are some signs we are in God’s will as a couple: