Video: John Piper, Tim Keller, and D.A. Carson on Sustaining the Marriage Covenant

“Sustaining the marriage covenant” is flowery language for simply “sticking together”. Selena and I have a saying: “There is no Plan B in our marriage.” We have no backup plan or escape clause. This mentality has helped us stick together in simple but profound ways. In the absence of a backup plan, each spouse seeks reconciliation instead of relief. We both understand that we have…

We had a baby! What we’re learning about marriage in the first week of being parents

We’ve been pretty quiet on the blog lately, and for good reason. We had a little girl on December 1st! I wanted to take some time and share explicitly with you (because we love our FM community), and to process through a few things we’re already learning about what it means to be married and parents simultaneously. Many of our readers have been parents for…

My Wife Doesn’t Complete Me

As much as I want to echo Mr. Maguire, I can’t. Selena doesn’t complete me, and nor do I complete her. “You complete me” is a famous line, said during the romantic crux of Jerry Maguire, a mid-90s ‘dramedy’ blockbuster. Since then, phrases like this one and “you had me at hello” have become comic relief staples for many “bromances” and lighthearted Friday night movie-quote sessions.…

Pains and Rewards of the Humble Route

The humble route is hardly the desirable route to take in any situation, let alone marriage, but why? Why do we fight it? Often times we lean on ourselves; taking pride in our own ability to handle things, instead of leaning into Jesus during the challenging times with our spouse. Learning to trust him and take him at his Word is no small task, but it is

20 Simple Axioms for Marriage

Sometimes the simplest epiphanies have the most profound impact. I’ve found these tiny axioms to be helpful in keeping us on point in our marriage. We’ve written a few posts that reinforce some of these (linked below), but in every case they’ve helped us keep the important things first.

7 Habits to Maintain Your Integrity When Traveling

Traveling is risky business. While it’s physically safe to travel, being away from home poses unique risks to your marriage if your character and integrity are weak. In fact, you’ll face the temptations and integrity-compromising situations I’ll be discussing in everyday life, but during solo travel they’re much more apparent. Traveling is an escape of sorts. You’re whisked away on a plane to a faraway…

3 Ps That Can Poison Your Marriage (Part 2)

In my last post I discussed our ‘propensity for poison’ and covered the first P that can poison your marriage. If you haven’t, I encourage you to read it first, as it prefaces this post and sets a solid foundation. With that said, let’s dive right in to the second and third Ps that can poison your marriage. The Three Ps That Can Poison Your…

Christ’s Love Compels Us: Are we loving our spouses the way God intended?

This past weekend I was challenged to rediscover the love of Christ in my life. Why? Because I was feeling slightly burnt out from ministry; a little overwhelmed by life (being pregnant is NO JOKE) and my patience was wearing thin – blame the tiredness of pregnancy or my inability to deal with the daily challenges of life…I was depending on myself and failing miserably. 

Planted

I enjoy trees immensely. They’re beautiful, complex, and essential for life on earth. I find them interesting biologically (just ask Selena.. she’s had to endure many of my nerdy observations) and I find them revealing when we view them as an analogy for our lives with God. This morning for my devotional, I broke my current pattern of working through John and decided to do…

The Importance of God’s Word in Your Marriage (Part 1)

The Word of God is alive and powerful. So why does it seem like it’s always so hard to make time for? Maybe to some of us it’s challenging to read, or seemingly irrelevant for daily life – let alone relatable to marriage. You’re not alone.