Pre-Marital Counseling
She said Yes!
This is a very special time in a couples life. Meeting the one you're going to spend the rest of your life with, getting engaged, and planning your wedding.
There is no doubt that getting married is one of the biggest decisions
a couple will ever make in their lives. So much time goes into planning the wedding day, and making sure every detail is perfect. But...the wedding day is just the beginning.
Neither of you have any idea what to expect in marriage. This is forever.
Planning a wedding is very different than planning a life together.
God designed a man and woman to be united in marriage. Many in the world today are unsure what that design is and how it works.
Matthew 19:5 ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ What does THAT mean?
There will be good times and bad times; sickness and health; and there may be a number of losses. Learning how to weather life's storms, and enjoy life together will not only make you stronger, but it will help you mature and endure.
Pre-marital Counseling will help you answer the leaving and cleaving question along with many others!
I will introduce the couple to a solid pre-marital course called Ready to Wed by Focus on the Family.
Topics covered in the 10 weeks of our working together are:
Christ-Centered Marriage: how marriage matures us, lifelong commitment.
Valuing Our Differences: personalities, honoring your spouse, remembering what brought you together.
Leaving and Cleaving: parents and in-laws, forming your identity as a couple, taking responsibility.
Communication: knowing and being known; creating a safe zone; empathy, listening, and expressing feelings.
Expectations: where expectations come from and the need to discuss them, being realistic, changing yourself instead of your spouse.
Conflict: attacking and avoiding,
using conflict to strengthen your relationship, keeping your hearts open.
Being a Team: roles and chores, decision-making, spiritual unity.
Money: money personalities, budgets, treasures in this life and the next.
Sex: patience, gender differences, temptation.
How to Have a Great First Year: putting your relationship first, being part of a community, finding a mentor.
There will be a video to watch together each session, along with each couple having their own workbook for weekly homework.
There will also be further suggested reading to help each couple look at other areas that may cause issues in the future:
1. Do We Have to Have a Budget?
2. What If We're Already Sexually Active?
3. How Can We Put Our Sexual Pasts Behind Us?
4. When Pornography Affects Your Marriage
5. Why Not Live Together?
Here’s how pre-marital counseling can help. . .
Getting to know each other. . .you the couple and the couple and counselor.
In our first session, we will establish trust and create a safe environment where you, the couple, can share what's working and what needs work in your relationship. You will never be judged or told how to feel.
Ready to get started?
This is an exciting time in any engaged couple's life, but it can also be one of the most stressful. I'm here to help you navigate the sometimes tricky and challenging road of being a couple, and help you achieve health in your relationship before you say I DO!