When Something We Value Is Broken, We Fix It.
One major key to our 30 plus-year marriage is that Ramona has been blessed with startlingly low expectations. Today she was ECSTATIC when I...
Change Your Marriage Using 2 Minutes a Day
This simple practice could change your marriage in powerful ways. "I’m as happy as I’ve ever been in my marriage."
How to Have an Increasingly Happy Marriage
I have always been annoyed by the whole "marriage is for holiness, not happiness" mantra, and in today's post Gary Thomas explains why: holiness...
Want a Happy Marriage? Stop Asking Your Spouse to Do This.
Don’t you think it would be cruel to ask your spouse to hold down five jobs?
Let’s say your...
What to Do When You’re Not Feeling It
What do you do when you're not feeling it? Most marriages go through this. You might not want to hear it, but love is a choice.
Persevering Love: How To Survive the Tough Times
Persevering love doesn’t just hang on through calamity by its fingernails; it hangs in there and thrives. It never gives up.
How to be a Cheerleader in Your Marriage
"See to it that you really do love each other intensely with all your hearts." 1 Peter 1:22
In the early 1990s, William and Esther flew...
The Two Words that Kill a Marriage
Do you know what two words will kill a marriage? Many couples get caught in this two-word trap. Here's how you can break free.
The Difference Between Forgiveness and Trust
Understanding the difference between forgiveness and trust is critical to every marriage. When Jason and Alisha met with my wife and I they were...
Sex Life Feel Broken? How to Rebuild It!
Sometimes circumstances turn our sex life into something negative, but don't despair. It's possible to reset your sex life!
Boundaries in Marriage: How to Be a Joseph, Not a David
David and Joseph. Two prominent people in the Bible. Both were godly men who faced sexual temptation. One yielded and paid a...
The Power of Inviting Your Spouse Into Your Hurt
As a Christian psychologist, I sometimes feel like I’m in the crosshairs of pastors and therapists who disagree about the road to...
The Vow I Failed to Make on My Wedding Day
Today's post comes from friend and blogger Eryn Lynum.
The laughter from the 150 people sitting before us offered me a gracious moment to compose myself. I...
The Weak Spot in Your Marriage Isn’t Your Spouse
"Marriage is kind of like beach volleyball—marriage in a bikini." Learn a surprising lesson about your marriage's weak spot.
How Your Family of Origin Impacts Your Marriage Now
Whether you're familiar with the term or not, your family origin impacts marriage in critical ways, for good or bad. Find out how.
1 Secret Every Man Must Know About Their Wives
This secret applies to women and men: if you really want to change your marriage, you have to understand the secret where you have power.
4 Ways to Keep Fighting When You Want to Give Up
Don’t despair. No matter how ugly the fighting is now, it’s only temporary. Eternity is just around the corner. Hang in there!
Significance and Security in Marriage Come From God
Marriages often fail because one spouse looks to the other to completely satisfy their innate need for significance and security in marriage.
How to Get Engaged –When You’re Already Married
Recently we sat on the floor in a crowded airline terminal and played a game of Scrabble on our trusty iPad. We had about...
Is My Marriage Too Broken, Even for Counseling?
Today's post comes from Andre and Timberly at livingourpriorities.com.
Do you feel like your marriage is so far gone that even counseling won’t work?
Well, we...
Is Your Marriage’s Health At Risk? Here’s How to Find Out
Today's post from America's Family Coaches is absolutely right on. Behind all the details and distractions, how is the heart of your marriage doing?...
10 Ways to Get Back the Spark in Your Marriage
How do you get that spark in marriage if you feel like you’ve lost it?
How do you rekindle...
Close the Loop: The One Vital Habit That Will Keep Your Marriage Moving Forward
Your hurtful words or actions open the loop by introducing pain. It is important to close the loop as soon as possible to deal with the pain and return the relationship to harmony.
It’s Never Too Late For a Fresh Start.
Let me share some good news. It doesn’t matter what age you are; a fresh start is possible for everything and everybody. Even your marriage.
5 TED Talks for Your Marriage
Our friends over at simplemarriage.net recently posted 5 TED talks for your marriage that would be great for you and your spouse to watch...
Why My Wife Was Sneaking Out of Bed at 2 A.M.
You might be shocked by why one former pastor's wife was sneaking out of bed at two in the morning (in the best kind of way).
The Destructive Danger of a Negative Spouse
A negative spouse reeks destruction on marriages. Here's how...
Frederick Buechner is a brilliant writer who can jump between fiction and nonfiction like a champion...
Husbands, We Need to Be Fully Present With Our Wives. Here’s How.
I’ve had a lot on my mind lately, but I feel like most men do. We think about our bills, the check...
7 Christian Marriage Myths. Does #3 Surprise You?
The hard truth about a Christian marriage is that your marriage will not be perfect just because you’re Christians. Don't buy these myths.
19 Reasons I Love My Wife.
On this date, 19 years ago, Kristen and I said, “I do”! Apart from following Jesus, I can’t think of a better...
What I’d Tell Myself on My Wedding Day
Today's post comes from Pam Blosser and her blog, www.journeytohim.com.
A couple of weeks ago I watched my daughter walk down a flower-edged aisle dressed in...
Your Spouse Doesn’t Deserve Your Love
One of the most challenging and beautiful aspects of the Christian faith is grace: undeserved kindness. Today's post comes from our longtime partners at...
3 Lies That Lead to An Affair
If you are frustrated with your marriage and you’re thinking about starting something new, here are three lies that could lead to an affair.
Accept Your Spouse As They Are, Even With Changes
In whatever ways you and your spouse change with age, one thing about you should never change: that you accept your spouse just as they are.
Emotional Affair: 10 Warning Signs
Here are the 10 signs you’re having an emotional affair. If ANY of these are happening with you OR with your spouse, please take action.
I Wasn’t Ready for Marriage
The more I would grow to love my husband, the more vulnerable to hurt I would become, and I wasn't ready for that.
3 Habits of Couples Who Persevere
Every couple I have ever known has times when they are disillusioned, angry, depressed, tired, or just plain ready to give up. It could...
7 Steps to Get the Most out of Marriage Counseling
This isn't the first time we've said this, but we're a big fan of therapy (done well) here at Thriving Marriages. Today's great post...
10 of the Hardest Adjustments to Make After Marriage
Today's post comes from Rebecca at To Love, Honor, and Vacuum. Enjoy!
Adjusting to marriage can be difficult!
There’s a lot of great stuff that comes...
Your Spouse is More Important Than Work
It seems like this conversation happened just yesterday, but it actually happened before Cathy and I had kids. I was a youth...
The Truth About Lusting: Why We Need to Reframe the Conversation about Men, Sin,...
Is there a difference between lusting and noticing? Lusting is a deliberate act. Sexual attraction is a hard-wired state of being over which we have no control.
How To Be Your Spouse’s Biggest Cheerleader
How can you become your spouse’s cheerleader? Start is by applying the “one another” passages of the New Testament in your marriage.
1 Easy Way to Have a Great Weekend with Your Spouse
Want to have a great weekend with your spouse?
Sometimes here at Thriving Marriages we post long, detailed content that dives into the deep waters...
The Secret to “Happily Ever After” In Your Marriage
Is it really possible to find "happily ever after" in your marriage? Les and Leslie Parrott share how couples can make it real.
How to Fall in Love All Over Again
Celebrating love usually isn’t something that “comes over” you. You don’t just sit around and wait to fall in love again.
“Fair” Marriage = Both Spouses Give 100 Percent
The 50/50 marriage is an arrangement of trade-offs and compromises, with spouses keeping score so one person never gets more or gives more than the other. Serving and submitting to one another are replaced by an emphasis on getting what is rightfully yours. Marriages only work when each spouse is giving 100 percent.
5 Practical Ways to Rekindle Romance In Your Marriage
Have you “lost that loving feeling?” of dating and romance. We need to rekindle romance, the fun and enjoyment of marriage.
Healthy Marriage Habits: Daily, Weekly, Monthly, & Yearly
To develop a healthy marriage, it is important that two vital elements come together.
First, at some point you must draw a line...
6 Steps to Forgiveness in Your Marriage
Who is supposed to initiate the process of forgiveness in a marriage relationship: the offender or the offended? We don’t think it really matters. Find out why and the steps to forgiveness and healing.
11 Boring Habits that Build an Exhilarating Marriage
The truth is that every great accomplishment you've witnessed, whether in sports, the arts, or a great relationship, happened because of years of practice...