Michelle Duggar Talks First Date With Jim Bob and Secret to Marriage: 'Say Yes, Even When You're Tired'
Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar have been happily married for 30 years come July, and now Michelle has revealed what happened during their first date, which lasted over four hours. Michelle also revealed her secret to a happy marriage, which may surprise some.
Michelle and Jim Bob met when they were in high school, and Jim Bob asked Michelle to attend a high school banquet with him. Even though she didn't know him at the time, a friend gave her the "he's okay" sign, so she accepted his invitation. However, it wasn't until after the banquet that they really got to know one another and ended up spending four hours studying the Bible together.
"It was so amazing," Michelle said in a post on TLC's website. "Jim Bob opened up the Bible and was just sharing so much wonderful information with me. After he left, I stood in the doorway and I just prayed, 'Father, I have never met a man like this before. If this isn't the one you have for me, I can't imagine anything better.'"
The couple courted for a while before they married, but Michelle said that she "fell in love with him on that first date."
So what is the secret to a successful, nearly 30-year marriage? If you ask Michelle, it's all about intimacy and "saying yes … even when you're tired."
"In your marriage there will be times you're going to be very exhausted," she told Today.com. "Anyone can fix him lunch, but only one person can meet that physical need of love that he has. You always need to be available when he calls."
However, there will be times when you simply can't "be there" for your husband, but according to Michelle, that only makes the reunion better.
"When you've missed it for seven days, you look forward to it even more," she explained.
"We're like a newlywed couple every day!" Jim Bob chimed in.