Jefferson Bethke - Sex, Marriage, & Fairytales lyrics

Disney movies and chick flicks, they've put us in a weird position They distorted our reality, because we forget they're actually fiction Because in marriage, we either get better or bitter, either joy or remorses What we're doing isn't working, just like at the rate of divorces So how's your marriage, I mean come on, let's be honest Marriage seems more like a prison than the paradise they were promised We thought marriage was supposed to fulfill us and make us happy, not lonely But the truth is God's first priority is making you holy You say, "No one told me, it feels so odd That dating feels like a vacation, while marriage feels like a job" Yet the secret of joy if we just pull back to façade Is realizing most problems arise when we elevate our spouse to God Without knowing it, we fulfilled Romans 1:25 By our actions, extremes of truth about God for a lie We've exchanged God for lesser created things It's like a husband trading his wife for a 2D image on a screen Hoping it'll set us free, justifying the fumes we're choking Because if your marriage rests on anything but Jesus, it's resting on something broken Yet guys continually sacrifice their marriage on the altar of s** and lust I mean if our dollars were honest, they'd stay in pleasure we trust So men, grow up, put down the controller How about you lead her with grace instead of trying to control her Now I've never been married, but I'm a product of one that was nonexistent So don't tell me I don't understand the pain, don't tell me I don't get it So for the singles, become friends first before you ever become lovers Pursue Jesus as your foundation before you get under the covers Because, believe me, a strong friendship before marriage will make a good marriage after Marriage isn't just s**, it's conversation and laughter I mean some spouses barely even like each other, and the marriage seems like a dead end You might share a checkbook and a house, but are you actually friends? I mean, if marriage isn't a commitment, then what's the point of the vows we say? "'Til d**h do us part" really means "Until the feelings go away" Like, I'll stay with him, but only until it gets tough and my love shifts But I say imagine if a parent took that perspective with their kids Like can't you see it? The minute the kid spills something on the floor The mom's saying, "Forget it, I don't even love you anymore" No, it's just like marriage, to last you need the strength from above Because it's not love that sustains the promise, it's the promise that sustains the love I mean think about it, out of anyone, who's actually had the right to leave? God had every reason in the world that he still came for you and me And on the cross he paid it all, took our shame, and set us free When he could've called the legions of angels, he chose to stay on that tree From the cross, he looks you in the eye and says I'm taking this from my bride When you trust in me, you no longer have to hide Because of me, it is finished, you've been made new You're spotless, you're blameless, there's no sin in you Because his d**h was a proposal, he wanted you no matter the cost Where some guys propose on the knee, Jesus proposed on a cross So read Ephesians 5, whether husband or wife Wife honor your husband, husbands give up your life Just like Jesus gave himself up for his bride: the church So men, lead by serving by putting her first So die to self, put your flesh on a life sentence Because you don't fall out of love as much as you fall out of repentance