But later when Dina had time to cool off, she wasn’t so sure her neighbor Helen was giving her sound advice. Even though she and Jeff had been having some strong disagreements lately, was it really reason enough to get a divorce? Should she break up her family over a few heated words and a slammed door? What’s more, did she want to put her two children through a painful divorce when she and Jeff could work things out?

Dina prayed about her marriage and began to realize she should look for advice elsewhere—not from someone who was still bitter from her own divorce and didn’t have a relationship with the Lord.

The following week Dina sought out Kim, one of the women in her Bible study. They began meeting on a regular basis, and Kim shared with Dina how she coped with ups and downs in her own marriage. As they talked, Dina began to realize that while she and her husband both needed to work on some things, preserving her marriage was worth the effort.

When a man and a woman marry, bringing two completely different people from different backgrounds together to form a new relationship can be a challenge. But when a wife needs advice, she should turn first to God’s Word and prayer, asking the Lord to provide a godly Christian woman to help her navigate the sometimes difficult terrain. Look for someone who is like the woman in Proverbs 31:26: “She opens her mouth with wisdom and loving instruction is on her tongue.”