Sign up for our free newsletter:

 1 of 3

I was trying to keep peace
When I first met Lucky, I wasn't ready for another relationship. With a divorce only three years behind me, the thought of marriage left a knot in my stomach. But Lucky's zest for life and outgoing personality soon changed my mind. She made life fun again—and introduced me to Christ in the process. We got along so well that I soon forgot the misery of my former marriage.

We got married after three years of dating. My two boys stayed with us on weekends, and Lucky's son moved in with us. We became one big happy family. Life just couldn't get any better. Except for one thing. Because of the boys, I had to maintain contact with my former wife.

We rarely spoke to each other without her throwing in a cutting remark or accusing me of something. When she called, I just kept quiet. When something had to be resolved I gave the phone to Lucky. She was good at finding solutions, and she kept the boys in line better than I did. In fact, Lucky could handle just about anything in our relationship, which was a great relief to me.

Our marriage was sailing along smoothly when Lucky started to change. Her moodiness put our relationship on edge. When I asked her what had changed, she snapped back and stated I had to resolve my issues with my former wife. I couldn't understand this about-face in her attitude. Sometimes she'd blow up after my ex-wife called and call me "cowardly" or "spineless." All this time I had been living with a volcano.

He used me as a shield
When I first met Ken, I knew I'd found a great guy. Ken's soft-spoken and compassionate nature was a stark contrast to my former husband. I'd borne the brunt of alcoholic rages in my first marriage, so Ken's gentlemanly ways made me feel safe and secure.

When Ken became a Christian I felt that he was God's man for me. He loved my son and welcomed him into our new home. But problems with Ken's family arose from the first weekend we were all together.

Ken's ex-wife would call to check on the boys, demand money, or whatever else she could think of to cause disruption. Ken wouldn't confront her, and he'd tell me to "deal with it" whenever she phoned. On the rare times Ken did talk to her, he was miserable for the rest of the day. I tried to help. But that never worked. They'd both get mad at me, and I'd be left in tears.

For months I pleaded with Ken to put an end to these interruptions. But my admonitions just bounced off him. Trying to keep my emotions in check made me seethe inside. And when I couldn't take the pressure any longer, I blew.

On top of the problems with his former wife, Ken's extended family disliked my son. Whenever we attended family functions, they either ignored or ridiculed him. Ken just ignored the problem. His inability to protect Aaron and me from his family's inconsideration really took its toll on our relationship.

next page... |  1 of 3

				Try an Issue of Today's Christian Woman Free! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders. If you decide you want to keep Today's Christian Woman coming, honor your invoice for just $17.95 and receive five more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issue is yours to keep, regardless. Give Today's Christian Woman as a gift Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!

RSS Feed   RSS Help