Marriage

No matter how hard we try, holidays are difficult. They can provide stress with making food and dealing with overbearing parents, nagging siblings, and jealous relatives. Setting healthy boundaries from the beginning will take the stress out of the holiday and not place an undue strain on your marriage.

The holidays often bring out the best—and worst—in people, including relatives and close friends. While most of us look forward to spending extensive time with our families, sometimes, there's someone in that circle who's toxic to you or your spouse. Whether or not you have children, shielding your marriage from toxicity during the holidays is important. Let's first focus on why a husband and wife should be a united front in this and other matters—because that's how God created marriage. 

Wives give so much of themselves to their husbands, their families, and to the responsibility that comes as a wife. Very rarely do wives get a portion of time to enjoy themselves with their friends, hassle-free. An option this Christmas is to set up a time when your wife can unplug from all on her to-do list and plug into time with her friends.

The last thing any married person wants to hear is that their spouse has been unfaithful. But, the truth is, you’ve probably been unfaithful and didn’t even realize it.

But expecting understanding from someone without voicing your struggle is a surefire way to initiate hurt feelings for you or both of you. 

Regardless of what intimacy means to you, it can be affected by outside influences. If you or your spouse have been struggling with intimacy lately, read on. Let’s explore 10 factors that might be at play in your struggle.

During that first year, dissatisfaction, disappointment, and discouragement were a part of daily life. It was clear to me we weren’t a match.

Proverbs warns that adultery destroys the one who commits it. If you’re on the edge of a sinful choice, stop here first. Here are five God-honoring steps to protect your relationship.

It's amazing what any couple can accomplish when even one partner is willing to do the work.

It may not make sense. The situation may seem impossible. The odds may be stacked against you. Trust God.

Marriage takes prayer, purpose, and perseverance. These five steps can help you and your spouse stay united and spiritually strong in the new year.

Let this Christmas be a time of unity, relying on God to bring clarity to the situation. You can trust Him in all things—even disagreements in marriage.

Cohabitation is common, but is it biblical?

The holidays should bring peace, but many marriages feel more strained than blessed. Discover how to push back against the spiritual attacks that come through stress, busyness, and misplaced expectations.

I bet your precious wife has already been doing “all the things” from decorating to baking, striving to make this time of year filled with moments and memories your whole family will enjoy and love. So, join her and do this beautiful holiday season together. It will not only be a great way to bond but also such a blessing for your marriage.

Hosting a holiday get-together is the very definition of hard work. More than just the given—that is, physical—labor, serving as a host will also require you to perform emotional—and spiritual—labor. Take the issue of boundaries, for example. Whenever people assemble, conversations will ensue, and so will differences of opinion. But when there are so many divisive issues waiting to twist an innocent dialogue into a conflict, how do you protect your holiday celebration from devolving into an emotional mess?

Observing past traditions lends itself for both partners to look with sadness upon days gone by. By creating new traditions, each partner values the other equally, allowing them to create new and exciting ones that make the holidays even more fun than they remember and leave a legacy for their children to pass down to their children.

How old was Joseph when he married Mary? Was he a teen heartthrob, an older businessman, or even a widower?  

Trying to fix everything before the day ends may be doing more harm than good. These biblical insights show why slow reconciliation can strengthen your marriage.

If in your efforts to conceive a baby you’re struggling with doubt and despair, here are seven powerful prayers inspired by biblical women who faced the same struggles.