12 Gifts of Marriage: Day 4 {bonus: 12 Days of Christmas Giveaway}

By Fawn Weaver on Saturday, December 28, 2013

12 Gifts of Marriage - Day 4

       DAY 4: PLACE CALLED HOME

“From this day forward, you shall not walk alone. My heart will be your shelter, and my arms will be your home.”

No one knows who originally penned those words, but over the years, they have become a part of wedding ceremonies all over the world.

Those twenty-two words, so simple and true, are a reminder of this: In marriage, a home isn’t about the white picket fence.  It’s having two arms to fall into at the end of each day.

One of the most comforting gifts of marriage is knowing you will always have a place called home.

It is this realization that allows a couple months behind in their mortgage to look into each other’s eyes and decide, “We only need each other.  The stress and strain of debt isn’t worth it.  Our home isn’t comprised of four walls.”

To the world, fascinated with perceived perfection and wealth, an expensive house is the status symbol for which to strive.  

Those in a loving marriage are able to quickly reject that pressure knowing a house does not make a home but rather the loving arms of a wonderful spouse.  

No matter where you go or where you stay, home is always with you.  

For some, that is an expansive place on the country hillside.  For others, a quaint apartment in the city.  Regardless of the location, size or furnishings, the wise couple knows a house will never define this life and certainly not the most important thing in life: Love.

The ongoing pressure to do more, buy more, acquire additional debt, finally has a place where it falls on deaf ears.  Because in marriage, it’s not about decorating a home with costly furniture.  But rather filling a living dwelling, no matter how great or how small, with love.

For the next 9 days, we will continue to unwrap one additional gift of marriage daily.  If you missed the first three gifts of marriage, definitely go back and read them.  They will bless your marriage; reminding you of the beauty of all you have and diminishing the importance of anything you might lack.

Please join me tomorrow for day 5 and before you leave today, make sure to scroll down to participate in our 12 Days of Christmas spectacular giveaway.

Until tomorrow…make it a great day!

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12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR GIVEAWAY

I’ve never done a series quite like this before.  Every day, for 12 days, I will post an encouragement for your marriage at the top.  And then, a pretty spectacular giveaway at the bottom in honor of the release of my upcoming book, Happy Wives Club. (Still can’t believe we are less than 2 weeks away from its release!)

TODAY’S GIFT: Sony Alpha NEX 5T Camera!

No purchase is necessary, entering to win is simple, and you control your number of entries.  But if you do choose to pre-order the book (Amazon and Barnes & Noble have it 25% off today), make sure to scroll down because we’re giving you tons of FREE STUFF!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here are the details for the awesome FREE GIFTS you’ll get for pre-ordering Happy Wives Club today. (**If you’ve already pre-ordered, you get these too!)

HWC_PreOrderGifts_920x786_4

If You Pre-Order 1-4 Books:

  • Love Notes: a brand new eBook by Fawn Weaver
  • An mp3 download of Happy Wives Club audio book read by Fawn Weaver
  • 50 photos with inspirational quotes from Happy Wives Club

If You Pre-Order 5+ Books (perfect for starting a book club with friends):

  • Get all the great gifts from the list above
  • The Official ”Happy Wife” T-shirt
  • The Official HWC “Happy” Mug
  • Invitation to join Fawn’s private book club Facebook group where she’ll personally guide you through the lessons contained in this book and answer your questions

HOW DOES IT WORK?

All you have to do is email a copy of your receipt (or order confirmation email) to hwcbook@gmail.com.  If you’ve already pre-ordered your book, just email your receipt and you still get these gifts!  For additional details: http://happywivesclubbook.com/blog/preorder.

WANT TO GIVE THIS BOOK AS A GIFT BEFORE ITS RELEASE ON 1/7/14?

Not to worry, we created these beautiful printables you can give to anyone letting them know you’ve pre-ordered the book for them as a Christmas gift, anniversary, wedding or engagement present.

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JOIN THE 1,000,000 MEMBER CHALLENGE: If you haven’t already done it, what are you waiting for? Join the club! It takes only a few seconds and, of course, is free.

Are you a blogger?  Click Here to join us for the It’s All About Love blog tour in honor of the Happy Wives Club book launch.

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Fawn Weaver

Founder at Happy Wives Club
Fawn Weaver is the USA Today® and New York Times® bestselling author of Happy Wives Club: One Woman's Worldwide Search for the Secrets of a Great Marriage, adopting the same name as the Club she founded in 2010. The Happy Wives Club community has grown to include more than 900,000 women in over 110 countries around the world. When she’s not blogging or working on her next project, she's happily doting over her husband of nearly eleven years, Keith.

 

Please note: I reserve the right to delete comments that are snarky, offensive, or off-topic. If in doubt, read My Comment Policy
  • Lauren Lawson

    Oh I love this post! I say to my Josh when he hugs me “this is my favorite place” <3

    • http://www.happywivesclub.com/ Fawn @ Happy Wives Club

      Love that, Lauren! What a beautiful testament of the love you give to him.

  • http://www.cherigregory.com/ Cheri Gregory

    Although The Story of Us was not the rom com we were hoping for when we saw in on a date night 15 years ago, I’ve always remembered these lines, spoken by the wife when she realizes she doesn’t want to file for divorce: “There’s a history here, and histories don’t happen overnight. In Mesopotamia or Ancient Troy there are cities built on top of other cities, but I don’t want another city, I like this city.” The “history” she speaks of is built from bearing witness to each other’s lives day in and day out.

    For me, “a place called home” is about this shared history. I can start asking, “Do you remember when…?” and my husband starts to laugh because he knows exactly what I’m referring to. Sometimes, all it takes is a look.

    According to Daniel Goleman (and others), couples become biologically wired to be together, to the point that when one spouse dies, the other is truly lost because the carrier of all that history, the co-creator of “home,” is gone.

    • http://www.happywivesclub.com/ Fawn @ Happy Wives Club

      First off, Cheri, this is absolutely beautiful! Secondly, this has just become the blog post for Day 5: Creating History. One of the most wonderful gifts of marriage there is… Thank you, friend!

  • Vicky McCollum

    thank you for letting me join
    your site im really blessed

    • http://www.happywivesclub.com/ Fawn @ Happy Wives Club

      It is my absolute honor, Vicky!

  • Jocelyn Bajorin

    I absolutely love reading these gifts, and sharing them with my dear sweet husband. I tell him all the time that in his arms is my “happy place” and everything about our snuggles is “home” to me. He says to me that having me in his arms is his happy place too. I really needed this today, thank you SO much Fawn! I can’t wait to get your book!!

    • http://www.happywivesclub.com/ Fawn @ Happy Wives Club

      Yeah!! Thanks, Jocelyn. Isn’t it wonderful when the exact message we need to hear most, comes exactly when we need to hear it? So happy I could be the one to deliver it.

  • Anissa

    I LoVe the 12 Gifts of Marriage — Each one a wonderful blessing.
    One year ago this past September we thought that we might lose our house due to foreclosure. It was only when we placed the situation in GOD’s Hands and said, Okay if we keep the house we are blessed, and if we don’t GOD will put us in another place that we are blessed — either way we win! The fear of losing my first home lost it’s grip, and I actually started looking forward to the new possibilities. GOD kept us in our home, and gave us a wonderful gift of wisdom that “A house is a place where we live, and a home is a place where we love. Love makes a place a home.”

    • http://www.happywivesclub.com/ Fawn @ Happy Wives Club

      Love this, Anissa: “A house is a place where we live, and a home is a place where we love. Love makes a place a home.”. Beautiful!

  • Becca

    I preordered my book on iTunes but I haven’t gotten a confirmation email. It does say preordered by the link. How can I get my goodies?

    • http://www.happywivesclub.com/ Fawn @ Happy Wives Club

      Hi Becca! Let me check with the publisher. I’m not sure how an iTunes confirmations would come. I’ll make sure to respond to you on Monday.

    • http://www.happywivesclub.com/ Fawn @ Happy Wives Club

      Hi Becca! Talked to the publisher and they said just a screenshot of the iTunes order is perfectly fine. They just need proof of the purchase. You can send that to hwcbook@gmail.com. Hope that helps! And thanks again for pre-ordering the book.