Pray to the Lord fervently and continually before entering marriage so that you do not by a foolish and rash marriage get yourself entangled in many snares that can no longer be removed, or can only be removed with great difficulty later. If it pleases the Lord in his providence to lead you to marriage, then pray that you may glorify him in it by dedicating yourself, your spouse, and the children he may give you to his service. Pray that the Lord will grant you an able and devoted companion, “for house and riches are the inheritance of fathers, but a prudent wife [and therefore a prudent husband] is from the LORD” (Prov. 19:14). Thus, the saints implored the Lord before marriage (Gen. 24:12, 50; 28:2-4). This matter is very important (Jacobus Koelman, The Duties of Parents, 35).