marriage advice

Why shaming those who suffer doesn't really work
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The Importance of Empathy: Why We Shouldn’t Shame Those Who Suffer

Recently, I saw post about suffering and the author argued how people suffer “because they choose suffering” and stay stuck “because they decided to stay stuck.” It’s not the first time I’ve seen the argument. Today I want to share some thoughts on it. Right out of the gate, I want to state that I…

marriage advice from divorced people
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Addressing the Lie “Don’t Take Marriage Advice from Divorced People”

“Don’t take marriage advice from divorced people.” If you are Christian, you’ve probably heard the words or some variation of the same.   It’s a common belief in Christian circles, that to divorce is to automatically be biased against all relationships. Thus, the advice runs, one of the best things married people can do to…

God is not obsessed
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15 Things We Think God is Obsessed With (But He Isn’t)

Some Christians, especially those of the evangelical/fundamentalist flavor (of which I was a part), believe God is obsessive. Directly taught or implied, we are taught that our connection to God is less about relationship and more about keeping to the rules, restrictions and commands of the Divine. To be clear, I don’t believe “obsessive” is…

bad dating Christian advice
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What If Bad Relationship Teachings are Keeping Women Single?

What if bad dating Christian advice is keeping women single? (Who want to be married.) In their new book, She Deserves Better: Raising Girls to Resist Toxic Teachings on Sex, Self, and Speaking, authors Sheila Wray Gregoire, Rebecca Gregoire Lindenbach, and Joanna Sawatsky talk about bad dating outcomes. “When we talk about *bad dating outcomes,” we often…

Is my marriage healthy
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Courageous Steps When Nervous To Explore If Your Marriage Is Healthy

Is my marriage healthy? I’ve interacted with individuals who believed it is an overreaction to explore whether a marriage is safe or not. They believed no marriage would survive if we all analyzed power and control dynamics or unchanging negative habits in marriage. That no spouse would survive such deep levels of scrutiny.  I believe…