 
Five Minutes for Marriage
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If people are living the Christian life at home,
they are living the Christian life.
FamilyLife
Could the building of healthy marriages be the very best way to build disciples?
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Dear Bill
Protect Connection Time from Conflict
This is crucial. Many couples try to multitask during the time they've set aside. They try to combine quality time and resolve difficult issues "while we have this chance for some time together." Avoid this. If something should come up during friendship time, call a Time Out and decide when you will talk about the issued later. ... The good news about problems is that they don't go away! They'll still be there to work on after your special times. (Scott Stanley, A Lasting Promise, p. 197)
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In This Issue
Upcoming Events around Greater Portland. We'd like to include the event/class you are hosting
Date Night PDX in August
Marriage in the News
Resources for Pastors (Repeats from our May newsletter)
Marriage is not for the faint of heart.
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The 4th Annual Date Night PDX is coming to you in August! Join in and encourage others to Date 4 Times in 4 Weeks to vitalize their relationships. Couples that date weekly are more than 3 times more likely to say they are very happy than those that don't.
Every Marriage Matters want to make is easy for you to encourage couples to build healthy marriage having fun doing it. Get
as well as downloadable videos and marketing resources to get started.
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The DateNight Comedy Tour
Friday, August 7
The Comedy Tour will be live at City Bible, also available to your church via a streaming internet download. Tickets are now on sale, $20/couple.
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6 Questions to Ask Before You Call It Quits in Marriage. I just don't love him anymore. She doesn't make me happy. We fight all the time. The kids are grown and we have nothing in common. Those are some of the words that are often spoken by a husband or wife when they're ready to throw in their marital towel. But there are a lot of reasons why couples should move slowly and think carefully about the incredibly life altering decision to move toward separation or a divorce. (Mark Merrill, MarkMerrill.com)
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Choose what type of couple you want to be. One night recently, I had to stop everything, and write something down. Because it was far, far too important to forget - and provides a key tip for marriages. (by Shaunti Feldhahn, Shaunti.com)
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Cultivating a Growing Friendship. God has joined two together as one not to be business partners but covenant friends to the end. God said, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh (Gen. 2:24)." It's in this "holding fast" that friendships are cultivated, but it most certainly requires purposeful effort! Here are some simple suggestions to keep your friendship with your spouse a top priority. (By Jamaal Williams, ThrivingPastor.com)
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Eight Ideas for Protecting Your Marriage from Divorce. I recently gave advice to singles and dating couples about how to lower their future odds of marital breakdown. Now, I'm focusing on those already married. In that prior piece, I listed some risk factors for divorce, so if you want a recap on those, see that post first. (By Scott Stanley, Sliding Vs Deciding blog)
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How Unmarried Men Respond to Their Girlfriend's Unexpected Pregnancies. The distrust and suspicion that a few men voiced are deeply troubling. In this view of things, an unplanned pregnancy represents not the fulfillment of a couple's love, not the chance for a new beginning, nor even a mere accident, but the revelation that a woman can't be trusted. (by David Lapp, Family Studies blog)
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Is It Selling Out to Marry Someone I'm Not Infatuated With? Look for qualities, traits and characteristics that are attractive based on the things you know you need and want in a relationship. Take it one step at a time, and be assured that in a right relationship, feelings will always be present, but they can never be the foundation of a healthy relationship. True love is based on a healthy combination of facts and feelings, and a whole lot of good choices. May God give you the wisdom to choose well. (By Debra K. Fileta, GaryThomas.com)
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Love Means Learning to Say No. Let me begin this post by sharing a common dilemma of life. How we resolve this dilemma will either serve or assault family intimacy. This account comes from a book that I highly recommend (Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown) ( Gary Thomas, GaryThomas.com)
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The Danger of Flirting. Protect your marriage by watching how you talk with the opposite sex, even in jest. Editor's Note: In his book, Hedges, Jerry Jenkins writes of the need to protect a marriage relationship by establishing boundaries ("hedges") that help you maintain purity and avoid temptation. Hedges are rules "intended to protect my eyes, my heart, my hands, and therefore my marriage." He writes, "I've found that if I take care of how things look, I take care of how they are. In other words, if I am never alone with an unrelated female because it might not look appropriate, I have eliminated the possibility that anything inappropriate will take place." In his book, Jenkins tells about five hedges, the fourth of which is below. (By Jerry Jenkins, FamilyLife)
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Marriage is not for the faint of heart. It's a promise bigger than the two people who marry. It's a serious, dedicated covenant to forge a lifetime bond. You need to know what the promise is if you want to make it work. It's an institution we join, not solely a private relationship. It's meant to shape us, improve us, and call out the best in us. -- Jeff Kemp, in Facing the Blitz
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Tami and Steve Stephens, Directors. Steve also serves at President. Tami serves her family in their home. Steve is a psychologist in Happy Valley.
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What a precious gift your Lord has given you: your spouse! Treasure that gift as you treasure your relationship with God. Strengthen both of these relationships by spending time with them. Pray together! Rejoice together! Laugh together!
Rejoicing,
Tom and Liz Dressel
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