Love, Honor, Teamwork: The Secret to Strong Marriages

What transforms an ordinary marriage into an extraordinary one? The answer lies in understanding how love, honor, and teamwork create the foundation for biblical partnership. Renee unpacks the divine blueprint for marital harmony that celebrates rather than fights against our God-designed differences. Dive into the fascinating concept that "Men are like Waffles and Women are like Spaghetti." This isn't just a cute analogy – it's a profound insight into how differently our brains process information and emotions. While women connect everything in their lives like intertwined pasta strands, men compartmentalize their thoughts into distinct waffle boxes. Understanding this fundamental difference transforms frustration into appreciation, creating space for grace and patience.

Biblical marriage isn't about outdated power dynamics. Ephesians 5 reveals a beautiful dance of mutual submission – wives honoring their husbands' leadership and husbands loving sacrificially as Christ loved the church. Renee dismantles common misconceptions about biblical submission, revealing how God's design creates harmony, not hierarchy. You'll discover practical ways to divide household responsibilities based on strengths rather than rigid expectations, building a partnership where both spouses serve each other with Christ-like humility.

Whether you're single, newly married, or celebrating decades together, this episode offers transformative wisdom for creating the relationship God intended. Take time this week to examine your approach to partnership. How might embracing your differences strengthen rather than divide you? Remember – marriage isn't about who does what, but about doing life together with God at the center.

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Episode Transcript

Renee Richel (00:07):
Hi, I'm Renee Richel, the founder and
president of 1 True Match.
I'm here to help you find andcultivate the love of your life.
For over a decade, I'vededicated my life to the
importance, purpose and dynamicof human relationships.
My team and I are disciplinedby faith, love and integrity to
help our clients find thequality relationship they've

(00:28):
always dreamt of.
Each week, I will be sharingthe tools and tips I've learned
that have rooted my success as amatchmaker with other leaders
around the world.
Hello, loves, welcome back.
Today we are going to talk aboutthe secret to a strong marriage
love, honor and teamwork.

(00:50):
I am so excited about today'sepisode because we're diving
into something that cantransform your marriage or
prepare you for the one God hasin store, you for the one God
has in store.
We're talking about biblicalpartnership, teamwork and

(01:10):
understanding the beautiful andsomewhat frustrating differences
between husband and wives.
Marriage is not just a fairytale where everything magically
falls into place.
Where everything magicallyfalls into place, it takes
intentional effort, commitment,love and, most importantly, a

(01:33):
God-centered foundation.
Maybe you've heard of the bookMen Are Like Waffles and Women
Are Like Spaghetti by Pam andBill Farrell.
Love them.
They are the most fabulouscouple and mentor so many of our
students.
It's a fun way to describe howdifferently we think and process
things.
Women tend to have one thingconnecting to another, like a

(01:57):
big plate of spaghetti, whilemen compartmentalize like little
waffle boxes.
Men compartmentalize likelittle waffle boxes.
Sounds familiar, right?
Here's the good news Goddesigned us differently on
purpose, and when we embracethose differences instead of
fighting against them, marriagebecomes a powerful partnership.

(02:21):
So today we're going to breakdown what the Bible says about
the roles of husbands and wives,and how to navigate
responsibilities as a team andhow to strengthen your marriage
through unity, not competition.
So grab your coffee, your cupof tea, journal and maybe your

(02:44):
spouse, because, trust me, theyneed to hear this too.
And let's dive in First thingsfirst.
What does the Bible actuallysay about the roles of husband
and wives?
In Ephesians 5, 22 through 25,paul gives a beautiful picture
of marriage Wives submit to yourown husbands as you do to the

(03:08):
Lord, for the husband is thehead of the wife as Christ is
the head of the church.
Husbands love your wives justas Christ loved the church and
gave himself up for her.
Now, I know that word submitcan stir up some emotions, but

(03:33):
biblical submission isn't aboutbeing weak or losing your voice.
It's about trusting, honoringand working in unity with your
husband.
And he leads the home.
And, on the other side,husbands are called to love
their wives as Christ loved thechurch, which means sacrificial,

(03:58):
servant-hearted andunconditional love.
So what's the bottom line?
Marriage isn't about powerstruggles.
It's about partnership.
It's about both husband andwife honoring God and each other
in their unique roles.
Okay, let's get into this funanalogy.

(04:20):
Let's get into this fun analogy.
Women are like spaghetti.
Everything in their brain isconnecting like a big plate of
spaghetti.
If they're thinking about work,it's connected to finances,
which is connected to providing,which is connected to
protecting their family.
It's all about continuousthought process.

(04:45):
Men are like waffles.
Their minds operate in separatecompartments, like little
waffle squares.
They have a square for work, asquare for emotions, a square
for relationships, a square fordinner plans, a square that has
nothing in it.
Each one is its own box.
So what happens when spaghettimeets waffles?

(05:07):
A man might focus on one thingat a time, while a wife is
processing 10 different thingsat once.
A wife might want toemotionally process something
while husbands already moved onto the next box slash task.
Neither way is wrong.

(05:28):
It's just different.
When we understand how Godwired us, we stop expecting our
spouse to think exactly like usand start appreciating the way
we balance each other out.
Appreciating the way we balanceeach other out the key grace,

(05:49):
patience and great communication.
So the million dollar questionis how do we divide
responsibilities in marriagewithout falling into frustration
or resentment?
When, in doubt, turn to God'sword?
Here are three biblicalprinciples for navigating
household roles with unity.

(06:10):
First, we need to remembermarriage is a team support.
Ecclesiastes 4.9 says "'Two arebetter than one, "'because they
have a good return in theirlabor'".
God designed marriage to be apartnership, not a who's doing

(06:33):
more competition.
It's about helping each other,not keeping score or playing the
petty game of tit for tat.
So instead of asking who shouldbe doing what, ask how can we
best support each other?
Second, roles can be shared andadapted.

(06:55):
Proverbs 31 paints a picture ofa woman who manages her home
Work, provides and cares for herfamily.
Meanwhile, ephesians 5 remindsus that husbands should lead
love and sacrifice.

(07:16):
Notice something importantthere's an overlap.
Nowhere in scripture does itsay husband must always take out
the trash and wives must alwayscook dinner.
A healthy marriage figures outwhat works best for your home
Together.
If one person is better atfinances, let them handle the

(07:38):
budget.
If one loves cooking, let themtake the lead in the kitchen.
It's all about balance andcompromise for the common good
of everyone.
Finally, serve each other likeJesus.
In John 13,.
Jesus, the King of Kings,washed his disciples' feet.

(08:02):
If the Son of God could humblehimself to serve others, how
much more should we serve ourspouse?
A great marriage isn't aboutwhat you can get.
It's about what you can give.

(08:23):
Whether it's making coffee inthe morning, handling the
laundry or simply saying thankyou, little acts of service
build a strong foundation for amarriage to last a lifetime.
So the big takeaway of how tobuild a godly partnership are
respect and honor each other'sroles.
Husbands lead with love, wivestrust and support your husband's

(08:47):
leadership.
Embrace the differences.
Don't expect your spouse tothink exactly like you.
Learn to appreciate how theyprocess things.
Work together, not against eachother.
Divide responsibilities basedon strengths, not outdated

(09:08):
societal expectations.
Serve each other each day,daily.
A Christ-centered marriage isbuilt on love, humility and
teamwork.
So, in conclusion, whetheryou're preparing for your future
marriage, newly married oryears into your marriage, take

(09:31):
time this week to pray over yourrole in your marriage or for
your future or current spouse.
Ask God how can I serve myspouse better?
How can I communicate with loveand grace?
How can I work together inunity and remember marriage

(09:54):
isn't about who does what.
It's about doing thingstogether, with God at the center
.
If this episode blessed you,please share it with your
friends, your family and lovedones, and don't forget to
subscribe to the One True Talksso you don't miss next week's
episode.

(10:14):
Next week we are going to talkabout the power of prayer in
marriage.
I hope you have a blessed weekand can't wait for our next chat
.
It's been another great talk onthis episode of 1 True Talks by
Renee Richel.
I look forward to our next chat.

(10:35):
Please write in your questionsand comments so I can be sure to
talk about whatever it is youwant to discuss in our next
upcoming episode.
Lots of love, God Bless.
XOXO.