Is the Bible's View On Marriage Outdated?

An article caught my eye this morning while checking my Yahoo email.  This family decided that they would have no gadgets of any kind that date after 1986.  The very first sentence caught my eye.

"Meet the McMillans. They're like a lot of families -- young, unmarried, with two kids, a boy and a girl." 

When did living together unmarried and having kids ever become normal?  That is definitely not a shun against post 1986 ways.  Back then, shacking up was more intolerable than now.  This makes me sad.  ;(  What will that eventually say?  "They're like most families, young, unmarried, with two kids." Will marriage someday be outdated? What is normal?  Well, I guess that depends on your view of the bible.  Even without being raised in church, I'm sure some people just have it in their heart that a serious commitment IS important.  It's not just a piece of paper.  You can't easily just walk out the door and "break up" like a silly teenage couple. Even if the world says marriage is just an old tradition, God's Word is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 

Just a paper?



Let's look at some stats. There has been a documented increase in the number of cohabiting couple in the last fifty years.  In 1960, there were approximately 450,000 couples cohabiting in the US.  By 2011, the number had increased to 7.5 million. 

That number is gonna keep growing.  It makes me sad because in my own personal life I've seen couples make a family, move on and make another family, and even another.  It doesn't matter what people say, I think more girls in their heart wish their man would make a true commitment.  I've seen friends act like they didn't care but privately tell me they are just waiting to finally get married.  It makes them feel undervalued.  I can understand why some guys don't want to commit because they are getting everything they need.  Why put a ring on it? Why buy the cow if you can get the milk for free, right?  Sounds kind of harsh but so true.  The law may put some value on cohabiting by calling it common law marriage but it's still just shacking up. 

I'm sooooo grateful Charles found me worth it to put a ring on it.  Not just a 10 year engagement ring but a wedding ring.  It makes me feel like I'm on top of the world.  ;)