Our story began, back in Florida, when we met as seniors in high school. We became fast friends as we bonded over faith and family. We were married shortly after college and settled into our newlywed life. But we soon realized that our marital bliss would be quickly overcome by reality. Our...
Early in our marriage, I remember thinking that having children wasn’t going to affect our marriage much. We were married over 5 years before I got pregnant with our first child. I had all kinds of ideas about motherhood that ended up not being true. One of which was, “having kids...
In Part 1 of this blog post, I shared a portion of David Augsburger’s book Caring Enough to Confront. In Part 2, I will relate portions of the second part of chapter two, titled "Truthing: A Simplified Speech Style," for encouragement and application in your marriage. Healthy...
Recently, I could not put down a book called Caring Enough to Confront: How to understand and express your deepest feelings towards others by David Augsburger, one of my favorite authors. He is a professor of pastoral care and counseling at Fuller Theological Seminary and has...
I was in a counseling session with a client who recently discovered that divorce was imminent. The pain, sorrow, and tears of this client were so heartbreaking. I could barely contain my own emotions. One of my first thoughts was, “This is why God hates divorce!” He knows what...
Why is it that oftentimes the holidays are so stressful or draining? As families gather, bringing gifts and holiday cheer, they may also be carrying baskets full of expectations and unresolved issues. Or, consider the person, who is alone with no family connections, during the holidays. The...
In his book, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian life, Donald Whitney tells a brief story about a conversation that a man had with his coworker, a recent convert. Upon finding out that his coworker had recently become a Christian, the man felt elated and said, “That's...
Wearing Blinders Blinders are used on racehorses to keep them focused on one thing and one thing only, the track ahead of them. Everything on either side and to their rear is blocked by the blinders. They have no idea what is happening anywhere around them. While this is a very effective tactic...
I am surprised these days as I talk to married couples, engaged couples and even college age singles who are trying to figure out how to launch well, how challenging it can be to really “leave” the home well, especially when you are “cleaving” to a partner in marriage...
I confess! This is a "Piggy Back" post to Ingrid Myer’s amazing post. So, before you read this, read "Why Is Intimacy So Complicated?" Ingrid is right, intimacy IS complicated! And, for so many of us, talking about this topic publicly or privately can cause a great deal of anxiety and...
