Divorce Hurts

In 1967 Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe completed a study to determine if there is a connection between personal stress and physical illness. 

The whole study is fascinating, but what fascinates me the most is the scale they used to measure stress.  They identified 43 life events that are common amongst people and assigned point values to each life event.

The people involved in the study picked out the life events on the scale that they experienced within the last year and added up their total.

Their research found that if a person had 150 points or less, there was a small chance of a stress-induced health breakdown.  150 – 300 points implied a 50% chance of a health breakdown within the next 2 years.  300 points or more raised the odds of a health breakdown to 80%.

Again, what I found most interesting were the items at the top of the scale, specifically, the top 3 life events they identified as causing the most amount of stress.

  • Death of a spouse – 100 pts
  • Divorce – 73 pts
  • Marital separation – 65 pts

The conclusion is that by death, divorce or separation, the loss of a spouse is one of life’s most stressful events.  It’s no wonder that God says in Malachi 2:16,

For I hate divorce,” says the Lord…”

One reason, of many, that God hates divorce is because divorce hurts people – in a large variety of ways.

Last week we talked about God’s high view of marriage.  Marriage is important to God because it is a promise, and God doesn’t break promises.  Marriage is also important to God because it has ever been a picture, a symbol, of God’s relationship with His people and Jesus’ relationship with the church.

As we continue to examine the corrective teachings of Jesus in this section of the Sermon on the Mount, let us all be aware that there are many in our number who have been harmed by divorce, either directly or indirectly.  Let’s be the very best version of ourselves and extend the same grace, kindness and sensitivity as that of our Lord Jesus. 

Know that you are in my thoughts and prayers every day and that I love my church family very much.

Wes LeFlore  (918) 607-8489 or huskerwes1@gmail.com