There are two topics a pastor can talk about that are guaranteed to generate emails, letters, phone calls, discussion, and debate. Those topics are money and marriage. I knew that this series we are doing on marriage would generate a lot of interest, reveal a lot of anguish, and strike a lot of nerves.

There is an old joke about marriage that goes like this: “Marriage is like a deck of cards. In the beginning all you need is two hearts and a diamond. At the end you wish you had a club and a spade!” Unfortunately and for too many marriages, that is true.

One of the ways marriage has been referred to is “tying the knot.” Two lines of life coming together and becoming wrapped up in a way that is not easily broken. It is an appropriate analogy except for the fact that too many knots are beco…