"Cohabitation" Singles Post by Dr. Kim

In our culture, people take the news of a couple mov- ing in together in stride. Many people believe that cohabi- tation is an acceptable part of the dating and engagement process. I often hear comments like, “I am so happy for them,” “Now they can save money because they only have one house payment,” and “They can really get to know each other this way.” Not only has cohabitation become acceptable but people think it is a pretty good idea. What are your thoughts on cohabitation? Consider these recent statistics:

• Within a year, 50% of all cohabiting unions collapse; within five years, 90% collapse.
• Couples who cohabit are twice as likely to di- vorce as those who do not live together before marriage.
• Married couples who cohabited have lower levels of marital satisfaction, higher marital instability, and more negative communication than married couples who did not cohabit.
• Couples who cohabit are less sexually exclusive both before and after marriage than couples who do not cohabit.
• Newly married couples who cohabited before marriage have much higher rates of domestic violence than newlyweds who did not cohabit.Cohabitation is not a good option. Overall, it does not work. More importantly, those who choose to cohabit completely disregard God’s plan for a man and a woman to join together exclusively in a marriage relationship. Doesn’t it make sense to think that the God of the uni- verse who designed marriage might have an idea of how to make it work? Isn’t it worth a shot to give His plan a chance?

Dr. Kim