Love… It’s a word everyone uses and a concept sought by all. In marriage we make a covenant commitment to love each other whole-heartedly through our actions. We profess it, we show it, we receive it, and we feel it – at least that’s the hope. Love is not something you can check off a list, it’s a way of living, thinking, and doing. Love is a particularly tricky…
Out in the Cold: Why Your Marriage is Worth Fighting For
What if we always did exactly what we wanted? God wants us to be happy right, so why not do what brings us happiness? You’re probably already objecting. Anyone over the age of 6 knows you can’t have everything you want whenever it’s available to you. If you’ve ever vomited from an Otter Pop overdose (not that I’ve ever done that…) you’ll understand. Humans have a strange…
5 Phrases Every Wife Needs to Hear Daily
I heard a story of a man and his wife who were having difficulty communicating. She felt undervalued and he felt nagged. She felt that his love for her was fading, and he felt like she was getting overly needy. Flustered, she explained, “I’m not sure you even love me any more!”. In response he quipped, “Honey I said I loved you the day I…
Divorcing Society’s Ideals for Marriage
Ideals wreak havoc on our marriage. What do I mean by ideals? I mean, those perfect or “ideal” images of married couples we see everywhere we look.
Gritty Love: Why Sex on the Beach is Pure Fiction
Love is many things, but easy isn’t one of them. But that’s how pop-culture models love, isn’t it? Whether it’s obvious or subtle, we’re shown how love should be easy: love is a feeling you follow and when the feeling stops, or in other words it stops being easy, it’s time to move on. It’s not that people on TV or characters in movies are…
Stop judging your spouse
After reading Matthew 7, I was challenged with the idea of judgement and hurt. How judgement hurts our spouse, ourselves and our marriage. How many times have I passed judgement on Ryan? I’m not talking eternal judgement (that’s God’s realm), I’m talking the cranky me who didn’t get enough sleep and suddenly feels the right to pridefully judge (i.e. nit pick) every small thing he does…
Your marriage is not a DIY project
Have you ever tried to do a DIY project? Honestly, I feel like I am somewhat of a creative mind, but when it comes to DIY projects (hello Pinterest) I’m like a first-grader learning how to write in cursive. Spoon rings A few Christmas’ ago I tried to do spoon rings for my Young Life girls. Easy-peasy right? Get a few sterling silver spoons from…
4 Ways to Prove to Your Spouse You Love Them (Part 2)
In my previous post, we covered the first two ways you can prove your love to your spouse: transparency/honesty, and loving them when they’re unloveable.* If you haven’t yet, I recommend quickly clicking back to give it a glance (it’s reasonably short), as it sets the stage for the series. Naturally this post will continue with parts 3 and 4 of the series, so let’s…
4 Ways to Prove to Your Spouse You Love Them (Part 1)
This Valentine’s Day couples young and old will strive to prove their love via candy, poems, songs, flowers, and helium balloons. It’s funny though, do these things actually do anything to convince our spouses of our love? Yes and no. If your marriage is healthy, Valentine’s Day gestures will extend an already present sentiment during a festive time of year – which is great! If…
Book Review: Love Does (by Bob Goff)
If you’re looking for a Godly, encouraging and a light, easy read — pick up Love Does. If you haven’t heard of this book yet, I’m glad I can introduce you to it! Although it’s not a marriage book – Love Does is a great read and might be just what the doctor ordered