Marriage
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A Disconnected Connected Society
Posts, tweets, pins, links, updates… The list goes on and on. IMHO, we are becoming the most disconnected connected people who have ever lived. (By the way; did you see how cool I am? I know tech speak for “in my humble opinion!”) We know what is going on with somebody half-way around the world whom we have “accepted” as a “friend” (even though we’ve never met them), or “follow,” are “linked in with,” or are in some other way connected electronically. At the same time, we have no idea what is going on with our spouse who is sitting right next to us; our children who live in the…
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How Strong is the Hedge Around Your Marriage?
It took a special tank. After the Normandy invasion of World War II, the Allied army–and particularly the Americans–got bogged down. One reason that had nothing to do with Hitler or the Germans was the landscape. If you’ve seen a stereotypical movie about Europe, you have probably watched a scene where someone tried to work their way through ridiculously-huge hedgerows. If it was a comedy movie, they probably made it through, but were cut up and scraped. When I think of hedges, being American, I think of little short bushes in front of my porch. But that’s not what the Allied army faced after D-Day. They faced those almost-stereotypical sized…
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How’s Your Family Growing
Recently, a couple of things happened that were not actually related. In my sometimes unusual way of thinking, there might have been a connection. My wife and I hosted our “second annual Cousins Camp.” All of the grandkids were at our house. It was a little — no, make that a LOT — loud for a few days. Thankfully, we had some “counselors” to work with us — our daughter and our daughter-in-law. Cousins Camp is the brainchild of my wife. It is an attempt on our part to help develop and nurture the sense of family that is so important to us. It is also an opportunity for us…
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When Tragedy Strikes the Family
Tragedy struck our church family a few weeks ago. It was a tragedy of the worst kind. Lives were lost and bodies were damaged which will take months to heal. Emotionally the damage was severe to everyone involved. You see a tragic car accident turned a vacation trip for a mother, grandmother, and daughters into a nightmare from which it will take years to recover. Our church family lost one of its vital members. When a tragedy like this strikes a family our hearts hurt to see them going through such hard times. When a physical family is close to one another, as this one was, and one or more…
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6 “Small” Things that Erode Marital Trust
Trust is the taproot of marriage. A marriage that is thriving is one that is built upon godly commitment. While every husband and every wife will make mistakes, when those mistakes cause distrust to build, the marriage is slowly eroding. Sadly, there are some who think they can keep from doing the “big” stuff that would break marital trust (have an affair, for example), but they fail to see the “small” things that are slowly eroding the trust in their marriage. Many even do some of these things intentionally, just to have their “own life” on the side. (Which, by the way, goes against the very fabric of marriage.) What…
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Where the Grass is Greener
“…You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because He no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. But you say, “Why does He not?” Because the Lord was witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. Did He not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union? And what was the one God seeking? Godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and let none of you be faithless to the wife of your youth.” (Malachi 2:13b-15). If you have…
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The “Model” Family
They live in the house you wished you owned. They drive the cars that you think are the most stylish. They wear clothes that are hip and always in style. Their kids go to the best schools and (of course) are always at the top of the class. Everyone in town knows them and thinks they are just the perfect family. …or the model family. But they aren’t. (At least, not necessarily.) In my mind, the “model” family may or may not have a trendy lifestyle. They may or may not have a big income and newer possessions. They may or may not have overachieving kids. So, if you don’t…
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Our Review of the Creation Museum
Last week, our family enjoyed a wonderful few days in the Cincinnati, Ohio area on vacation (video coming tomorrow!). The main reason we chose this area for our vacation was to visit the Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky. I had heard of this museum for some time, and we were thrilled to be able to go and enjoy the museum for two days. After getting home, I thought it would be good to write a review on the site, since I’m sure many of you have never been to the Creation Museum. In a word, my review is “go.” If I had to add another word, it would be “soon.”…
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Move Here, and Your Home Will Improve
Can you imagine a city counsel or tourism board being so bold as to make a claim that would say, Move here, and your home will improve? That would be about as bold as it gets. Who could honestly say that, if you move to this one place, your marriage will get better, as will your relationship with your children? I just can’t see any tourism board getting that bold with their claims, no matter how much they may want you to come! BUT… I know a place that will do that, and today, I want to invite you to move. Let me describe this place. There are no beaches nearby,…
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A Christian Response to “Is It Time to Change Our Views of Adultery and Marriage?”
Yesterday, the Huffington Post ran an editorial by Lisa Haisha with the title “Is It Time to Change Our Views of Adultery and Marriage?” With that title, you can figure out her answer. Haisha begins by saying that “society’s view” of marriage–a man and woman married for life–has not always been the accepted norm. Many societies have (and do) expect and promote multiple partner marriages. She then writes: Clearly the concept of marriage has changed greatly over the years. And with today’s rate of divorce between 40 and 50 percent, coupled with the prevalence of adultery in many marriages, perhaps it’s time for the concept of marriage to continue to…
