contributed by Darlene Apanay

Once you say the words “I do,” there’s no turning back.

Marrying the person we cherish often leads us to unexpected surprises. The same sweetheart we walked down the aisle turns out to be a completely different person once we start living under one roof.

Still, marriage doesn’t have to be a nightmare. It can be a hot brew of sweet, potent love, replenishing your cup every single day.

The 700 Club Asia host Peter Kairuz and his wife Christine are no exception to thousands of couples who bump into precarious moments in their life together. But after letting God intervene in their slowly crumbling union, the two chose to build their relationship on something better—something worth pursuing.

It Started with a Blind Date

“My best friend asked me to go out on a blind date. My younger brother, I, and my best friend,” Peter recalled.

Though hesitant to spend money and time on someone he doesn’t know, Peter pushed through with the date, and met Christine for the first time.

He discovered how Christine wanted to take up law, was a commercial model and once a calendar girl. He thought, “Wow, I’m having a date with a calendar girl!”

That was how Peter and Christine started their romance. Their melody is peaceful, the beat is definitely exciting, and the rest, as they say, is history.

On The Rocks

When the two got married, Peter ran his business, while Christine was thousands of feet above ground as a flight attendant. Having less and less time together, each traveled different routes, both in places and in life.

Peter would go to bars and nightclubs while her wife is away. Christine, too, will enjoy a life of her own—drinking and giving in to material pleasures. Their marriage quickly became out of tune.

This cycle made Christine ask herself, “Is this all there is to a married life?” and so she started searching for answers.

A Marriage Restored

Through watching The 700 Club, the Kairuz couple came to experience breakthroughs not just in their marriage but even in their personal lifestyles.

Like how some wives can be naggers at times, Christine confessed, “I learned how to seal my mouth. It was like God placed a divine zipper.” Peter felt a change within him, too, and decided to quit smoking, drinking, and his late-night vices.

What they learned and personally battled together to strengthen their bond are the very things they now impart to pastors and their spouses during Ministering to Ministers events. These are monthly marriage enrichment seminars designed to reignite romance and commitment of couples from all over the Philippines.

“Marriage is not about I, me, and myself,” Peter stressed. “It is about her and me, the two of us, two becoming one flesh. We are a tandem.”

Marriage will always be a give-and-take relationship, birthed out of love. When genuine love stays as the motivation, tying the knot becomes the missing note that completes a beautiful song.

Peter and Christine talk about love, romance, and marriage in The Essentials for Keeping Your Marriage Ablaze. This teaching DVD is exclusively available for members of The 700 Club.

To avail a copy for you and your spouse, watch The 700 Club Asia’s Unli Love, Only God live TV special from February 13 to 17, 11 p.m. on GMA News TV, with replays on February 20 to 24.