My wife and I have counseled many troubled marriages. As I have worked closely with married couples, I find that there are, at least, five indicators that reveal hope for the marriage amid turmoil.

1. The husband is willing to do whatever it takes to sacrificially love his wife.

This means owning his past, taking responsibility for failures, being honest about his own weaknesses, and cultivating an environment of vulnerability. If a man hides his failures, dominates or controls his wife, cowers in fear because he is intimidated by her, or seeks satisfaction outside of the marriage without taking responsibility for these actions, the failure of the marriage is entirely his responsibility. Conversely, regardless of what she has done to him, if he chooses to love her with self-sacrificial, redemptive actions, there is hope.

2. The wife is willing to restore her trust in her husband, even if he doesn't deserve it.

She has a front row seat in the blunders of her man. She knows the areas of his life in which he consistently fails and has felt the pain of his mistakes. He is responsible for his actions and they directly affect her, but if a wife has confidence that her husband will learn from his mistakes without seeking to expose them for her own gain or find comfort in an unhealthy manner, her trust in him supplies an amount of hope for the marriage that can't be measured.

3. They tolerate the failures of one another without accepting them.

A wife shouldn't overlook the fact that she married a man who regularly views pornography, if those are his actions. He is who he is. But, she should never accept that behavior as healthy for the marriage. A husband should remain gentle toward a wife he is wedded to if she can't control her tongue and consistently undermines him. But, he should never stop trying to address it in a redemptive way.

4. They are not too proud to seek help.

I have yet to meet a married couple that doesn't need counselling. There is wisdom to be gained from those who are experienced. Outsiders can see things that are troubling a marriage easier than the couple who is living it. Sometimes, a divorce can be avoided with a simple phone call to a trusted, yet truthful, friend who will help set in motion a plan toward reconcilation. Unfortunately, many times a marriage is dissolved simply because one or both parties refuses to humble themselves.

5. They refuse to give up.

You can't stop a person who is hellbent on divorce. But, regardless of the baggage, every marriage can be redeemed. Until the dissolution papers are signed before the judge, if the couple refuses to throw in the towel, even if they need to forgive each other 490 more times before the end of the week, there is hope.