Perhaps you feel crushed with the burden of providing for a family. Maybe you feel exhausted trying to please a persistently disappointed mate. It might be that you feel buried in duty, unglamorous tasks, anonymity, and the terrifying reality that when you look ahead, you don’t see anything changing for a long time. You pray […]
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Throughout the nine months of our engagement, Lisa and I made many plans, as any engaged couple does. We talked about missions, family, serving God—you name it. It was an intense time, and we often prayed, “Lord, wherever you want to take us, however you want to use us, we’re all yours.” Of course, we […]
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I don’t know if anything has ever touched me as much as when my oldest daughter returned from her first year of college and explained how she got through some lonely moments. She told me she’d go into the bookstore (it was a Christian college), find one of my books, look at my picture on […]
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At first, I thought I had sprained my little finger. It hurt when I used it for anything, but I couldn’t remember the point of injury. And then I eventually realized that both little fingers felt the same way. “What a coincidence,” I thought, “but time will make them feel better.” And then they started […]
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“Taylor” met her boyfriend her freshman year in college. They started dating that fall and never broke up, so when Christmas break of her senior year rolled around and graduation was looming, she was hoping for and kind of expecting an engagement ring for Christmas. When she didn’t get one, and her boyfriend didn’t even […]
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Ever think about the fact that the best of marriages likely face the most intense spiritual warfare? Or that the spouses who are most serious about their faith (even if their spouse isn’t) endure the most vicious of spiritual assaults? Doesn’t this make sense? Satan wants to take out those marriages that most inspire and […]
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Statistics can be terrifying. If a boy’s dad was abusive or unfaithful to his wife, the chances are overwhelmingly higher that he will grow up to be an abuser or to cheat on his wife. If a woman isn’t nurtured by her mom and was raised by an addict, she is far more likely to […]
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James and his wife Debra just recently entered the empty nest years. Happily, they’re finding these months to be among the most delightful of their marriage. I believe James’ attitude has a lot to do with that. James is a big fan of craft beers; it’s become a middle-aged hobby for him. He travels on […]
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My friend Dr. Mike Dittman offers a profoundly refreshing new approach to “counseling.” This is so applicable to friendship, marriage, and parenting: “People have often asked me to help them figure something out or fix something in their lives. They want answers to their questions and affirmation in their struggles, but not to learn how […]
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The very best gift you can give your spouse, spiritually, is a gift that will actually serve you as much as it serves your spouse. Ask yourself, “How can I help my spouse draw closer to God and learn to draw from Him on a daily basis?” Anything you can do to help your […]
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