The conclusion to every fairy tale marriage usually is “And they lived happily ever after”. The unfortunate reality however is that that remains just a fairy tale to many families as the world is plagued with the stark reality of escalation of dysfunctionality in families, as well as separations and divorces. 

Dysfunctional Families are characterized by neglect, conflict, misbehaviour as well as the absence of one or both parents.

Below are some of the statistics for the US alone:

• One out of Eight Children are born to teen moms
• 34% of children in the US are living with an unmarried parent
• 46% of Fathers say they don’t spend enough time with their children
• 50% of marriages in the US will end in divorce or separation
• 41% of first marriages in the US will end up in divorce
• 60% of second marriages end up in divorce
• 73% of third marriages end up in divource

Sources:

https://brandongaille.com/22-scarey-statistics-on-dysfunctional-families/

https://www.wf-lawyers.com/divorce-statistics-and-facts/

Here are some statistics collected in South Africa in 2016

• 25,326 divorces were granted in 2016
• Out of the above 25,326, 44.4% of the marriages were less than 10 years old
• The highest proportion of divorces were couples who had lived together for between 5 and 10 years

Source:

http://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=11192

Much as these statistics paint a grim picture for marriage, it is only half the story. There are countless other marriages that continue to weather every challenge and thrive. Those that follow God’s blueprint have a different story to tell; that there is hope in God’s purpose and design as given in scripture for those families that choose to honor God and live righteously. The Bible paints a very beautiful picture of the ideal family that God envisions  – truly a dream home:

Psalms 128:1-4 “Blessed are all who fear the Lord,  who walk in obedience to him. 2 You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours. 3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table. 4 Yes, this will be the blessing for the man who fears the Lord.”