THE STATE OF OUR UNIONS

The Soul Anchor [Hebrews 6:19] - February 1, 2026

It was recently announced that this year’s State of the Union address will be delivered by President Donald Trump to Congress on February 24 this year.   The “SOTU” is a communication from the President to Congress in which the chief executive reports on the current condition of the United States and provides policy proposals for the upcoming legislative year. The address originates in the Constitution (Article II, Section 3, clause 1), which requires that the President "shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient."  In other words, it is important that congress and the public know what is happening in our nation and get some ideas about what the future might look like.

While most of my life I have associated the “SOTU” with being delivered in January, some years such as this year it is delivered in February which I believe is appropriate because February is widely celebrated as the "Month of Love," centered around Valentine's Day on the 14th.  I believe that every bit as important for our country as the “State of our Union politically and socially is the State of our Unions - the marriages and marriage vows that we have made to our spouses.  How can we have a strong nation, state or local community if we are living with the stress and constant pressure of hurting or broken marriages? 

Recent data from the Barna Group and the Marriage Project reveal that U.S. marriage rates remain near historic lows, with 47.1% of households headed by married couples, reflecting a long-term decline. Adults are marrying later, with median ages at first marriage now around 30 for men and 28 for women. Overall trends indicate fewer, later, and less stable marriages compared to previous decades. Overall, the national divorce rate has been slowly declining for some time now perhaps partly because fewer people are making the choice to get married.  U.S. census data show that eight percent of adults currently live with a partner outside of marriage.  My experience is that it doesn’t matter what the statistics are if a couple is unhappy in their own marriage.

Jesus primary teaching about marriage was to affirm the Genesis account of creation and tie Moses’ permitting of divorce to the hard hearts of the husbands. Matthew 19:13-9 says,

“Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?’  ‘Haven’t you read,’ he replied, ‘that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?  So, they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate. ‘Why then,’ they asked, ‘did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?’ Jesus replied, ‘Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning.”

Perhaps the best gift to give your spouse this year is to simply review your wedding vows, ask yourself how you are doing living up to them and re-commit yourself to upholding them.  If you are not sure that you can make that commitment, you should probably start a conversation with your spouse as to why.   If you don’t remember the vows you made, I use these or something similar when I officiate a ceremony,

“I, take you, to be my wedded wife/husband. To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, as long as we both shall live.”

God Bless our Marriages and Families,