Therefore shall a man LEAVE his father and his mother, and shall CLEAVE unto his wife: and they SHALL BE ONE flesh. And they were BOTH NAKED, the man and his wife, and were NOT ASHAMED.

Genesis 2:24-25 KJV

We were all born into a family and have bonds and connections with our family of birth. However, it is God’s plan and design for us all to form new families with our spouse through the institution of marriage.

God laying down the foundation for a successful marriage, gave us a simple but profound principle to apply and follow. The key to a successful marriage is unity, oneness between spouses, but the process to this unity is leaving and cleaving.

Why would God mention leaving? If it wasn’t necessary to leave, if staying wouldn’t pose a challenge, God would not have mentioned this. Physical and emotional leaving is required to ensure complete cleaving to your spouse.

Your devotion, affection, and loyalty should be first and foremost toward your partner, before your family of birth. If you’re still going back to receive affection, attention, care, things, comfort from your parents, you haven’t left. He that pays the piper determines the tune after all.

No matter where you’re at in your life right now, married or unmarried, know that marriage is something God wants you to succeed at and so He has given you the literal cheat-code to do so – leave and cleave.