"It's also advisable to seek counseling or build a relationship with an older couple ... Linda and I have built a close relationship with an older couple in the field of Christian counseling, whom we greatly respect and admire. They have been valuable mentors to us, especially in times when we have gone through difficulties.

"Attend a healthy, Christ-centered church. Our church's influence in helping us overcome the painful effects of the divorce of my parents has been invaluable to us. We find support of like-minded Christians and biblical answers to everyday problems. Attending a biblical church that encourages healthy marriages can be the difference between being a statistic or being a survivor."

Margaret Moore was 13 when her parents split up. Today she's 47, living outside Philadelphia in the village of West Grove, Penn. She and her husband Steve have launched one child and are raising two more. They celebrated their silver anniversary last summer.

"Ask Jesus to give you a submissive, obedient, willing heart," Moore advises. "Your future husband's greatest love need will be for you to trust him. And you will show your trust in the Lord Jesus by how much you trust your husband. It takes great faith—like Sarah with Abraham!—but the rewards of a peaceful, joyous, lasting marriage are worth it. You can read more about this in 1 Peter 3:1-6.

"Support your husband and be content with the income he brings in. A big kiss and hug in the morning before walking out the door will make your husband more productive and sure of himself at work. And if he works at home, so much the better—he can get lots of kisses and hugs!

"Have a continual, full, and healthy sexual relationship with your husband. It will not guarantee his faithfulness—only his love for God will do that—but it will make it easier for him to stay faithful to you. It is a duty, but such a happy, joyful one, and so much in God's plan. Ask the Lord to help you, and He will. Read more about this beginning at 1 Corinthians 7:3."

Valerie Day has been married 30 years. She was 23 when her parents split up. Today she's 51, living in Syracuse, N.Y. and homeschooling three teenagers while her husband Larry—also an adult child of divorced parents—works as a hospital administrator.

"First you have to realize, spiritually, that marriage is a sacred analogy of God's relationship with his people," says Day. "It is a frail earthly witness to an eternal heavenly covenant. Because of this, Satan desires to destroy our marriages, and do collateral damage to the children.