Category Archives: To Inspire

Spiritual Sunday: Is God Mad at Me?

Is God Mad at Me?

In our church we talk a lot about obedience. This is for good reason, but I think being so obedience-focused comes with certain risks. One of these risks is that we misunderstand the reason behind obedience. Not understanding the reason behind rules will make anyone resentful, annoyed and reluctant toward the rules. As any parent can tell you, if you order a child to do something (“Don’t touch that! Clean your room!”) without making sure the child understands the why, what you get is an annoyed, reluctant child. Or a child who only obeys to appease and avoid punishment. But… Read More

Spiritual Sunday: The Blind Men and The Elephant (and God and Church and Marriage)

The Blind Men and The Elephant

In the Indian fable of the blind men and the elephant we learn that we are often blinded to reality by what we connect with. This parable extends to God, church and our spouses. Spiritual Sundays are back! Last year, I started doing a spiritual Sunday post once a month, but got out of the habit. This year, I want to get back into it. I really enjoy writing my thoughts about God and religion. It is an important part of me. And if you aren’t religious, that’s fine, I’ll always try to tie the topic into marriage at the… Read More

Marriage Hack: Write a Marriage Manifesto

This is my marriage manifesto- a set of 10 guidelines and aspirations I've written to remind myself to be the wife I want to be. Click through to read more.

In a nod to Gretchen Rubin, I’ve written my own 10 commandments for my marriage, or my marriage manifesto. Our theme for the month is marriage hacks- helpful tips and tools for your marriage. Last week’s post: Marriage Hack: Put Yourself Through Therapy I’ve recently gotten into this great podcast called Happier by Gretchen Rubin (author of The Happiness Project) and her sister Elizabeth. In it, Gretchen and Elizabeth talk a lot about manifestos, which are meant to be reminders of the life lessons you’ve learned and aspirations for who you want to become. These manifestos can be for one specific… Read More

Marriage Advice from Chip and Joanna Gaines

How cute are Chip and Joanna Gaines? They have arguably the strongest marriage on TV. Click through to read some of their secrets!

Chip and Joanna Gaines arguably have the strongest marriage in Hollywood these days. Their marriage advice is much like they are: down to earth and focused, with a side of cheesy. So much of marriage in TV shows is portrayed as dramatic, contentious, and basically a downright drag. From reality TV to sitcoms, the message seems to be marriages don’t last- the guys are dumb and unfaithful, the wives nag and complain. Enter Chip and Joanna Gaines. I actually first checked out Fixer Upper last year when I kept hearing that Chip and Joanna Gaines have the best marriage on… Read More

Marriage Advice from the Obamas

Secrets to the happy marriage of Michelle and Barack Obama. Click through to read their quotes and advice on how they've maintained such a strong marriage.

No matter your political stance, we can all agree that Barack and Michelle Obama have been fabulous examples of a rock solid marriage in their time in the limelight. Here’s a few pieces of marriage advice from the Obama’s. This month we’re going to be talking all about marriage advice from famous people, who are also strong examples of good marriages. Barack and Michelle Obama have been nothing but that- a FABULOUS example of prioritizing their marriage even with what I imagine would be extremely difficult circumstances to prioritize marriage - having your husband be the president. I mean, my… Read More