Singer Helen Baylor, 47, was singing professionally by age 12, and by high school, she was sharing the stage with such music legends as B.B. King, Aretha Franklin, and Stevie Wonder. She’s won two Dove Awards, been nominated for four Grammys, and most recently, was nominated for several Stellar Awards for her album Helen Baylor Live: The Testimony Continues. But behind her successful career, Helen’s struggled personally. Several years ago, Helen and her husband of 18 years, James, were 6 days away from signing divorce papers when they decided to stick it out—no matter what. Here’s why.

When my marriage fell apart, I didn’t know what to do. Some people told me I should divorce James and move on. But I knew that wasn’t God’s plan. So I started really reading the Bible and realized I had to forgive—and decide to make our relationship work, with God’s help.

Oh, no. We didn’t instantly get back together. It took another two months to work through our hurts and build trust.

We communicate with each other! We laugh and have fun like never before. If we hadn’t gone through the hard things we did, we wouldn’t be where we are today.

My willingness to say, "Hey, I messed up. I’m sorry." And I have to say that a lot!

Reprinted by permission, Today’s Christian Woman.