Marriage Ministry

The first year of marriage is the most important. It forms the habits - good and bad - that will define the rest of your married life. Make that first year the best it can be.

For 30 years Randy Alcorn has been encouraging people - young and old - to pursue the rewards of sexual purity. Too often we settle for a compromised Christianity that's just a baptized version of the world's sad existence, rather than the abundant life to which God calls us.

T.D. Jakes doesn't just preach to his listeners, he gives them the psychological and practical tools that they need to realize their faith in their lives. Clear-sighted, realistic, and spiritually uplifting, Making Great Decisions is one of those rare books that can change lives. "Remember," writes T.D. Jakes, "your tomorrow is no better than the decisions you make today."

Throughout Keep Showing Up, Karen includes ideas to implement in your marriage right now, such as powerful statements to speak to your spouse, date-night-on-a-shoestring suggestions, and discussion starters. Discover how your "incompatibility" can become the strength of your marital team in this real-life guide to both living with and loving your spouse - differences and all.

In 1998, after 12 years of counseling the wives of men in sexual sin, Kathy Gallagher wrote the original version of When His Secret Sin Breaks Your Heart. Presented in the form of letters which addressed the most pertinent struggles wives deal with, this book proved to be a lifesaver for thousands of women over the years. The 20th anniversary edition of When His Secret Sin Breaks Your Heart adds nine chapters of new material, making it more compelling than ever.

If you've tried Natural Family Planning and have discovered that your life is now awful - or if you feel judged or judgey, or if you trust NFP but your doctor doesn't, or if just you're trying to figure out how the heck to have a sex life that is holy but still human - you'll find comfort, encouragement, honesty, wit, and, most importantly, practical advice in The Sinner's Guide to NFP.

Laced with the Farrels trademark humor, The Marriage Code is packed with ideas for creative code-breaking so couples can connect at a richer, deeper level, enabling them to discover the real enemy of love, the pace that will energize their relationship, the plan that will get their lives in sync, the keys to creating great interactions, and the clues for discovering a satisfying sex life.

Sometimes it seems we just can't get what we want. Circumstances thwart our best-laid plans. We struggle to live a heartfelt life. Worst of all, says Eldredge, the modern church mistakenly teaches its people to kill desire (calling it sin) and replace it with duty or obligation (calling it sanctification).

The transition from "married" to "married with children" can be tough. Before they know it, a once youthful and energetic married couple finds themselves in a minivan loaded with noisy kids and littered with Cheerios, crusty Sippy cups, banana peels, and missing library books. As much as you love your children and work hard to nurture and train them for the future, the challenges that come with parenthood can make the "for better or for worse" promise a hard one to honor.

There is a secret formula for the best sex of your life, but you won't find the recipe in the pages of a checkout-line magazine. Popular relationship expert Dr. Gary Smalley, best-selling author of The Language of Love and The Blessing, finally tackles the topic that's on everybody's mind: sex. With his pastor and good friend, Ted Cunningham, Smalley nudges past our hang-ups and sacred cows to answer the question, How can I have the best sex of my life? The answer?

Pastor Scott Kedersha has worked with more than 5,000 premarital couples to prepare them for the biggest decision of their lives. In Ready or Knot?, he offers practical and Christ-centered guidance for couples for all of the days after the wedding day.

The Contraception Deception: Catholic Teaching on Birth Control by author Patrick Coffin is a comprehensive assessment of the Church's sexual ethic. In this expanded revised edition of Sex Au Naturel: What It is and Why It's Good for Your Marriage, Coffin demonstrates how the rejection of "humanae vitae" impacts more than just our national birth rates.

Jim Daly, president and CEO of Focus on the Family, is an expert in fatherhood - in part because his own 'fathers' failed him so badly. His biological dad was an alcoholic. His stepfather deserted him. His foster father accused Jim of trying to kill him. All were out of Jim's life by the time he turned 13. Isn't it odd - and reminiscent of the hand of God - that the director of the leading organization on family turned out to be a guy whose own background as a kid and son were pretty messed up?

Good communication is essential in a good marriage. In this unique book, best-selling author and pastor John Hagee and his wife, Diana, present a husband's and wife's point of view on communicating more effectively. Designed as two books in one, John's What Every Man Wants in a Woman and Diana's What Every Woman Wants in a Man will bless couples married for years, young and newly married couples, and even singles, who are seeking to gain a better understanding of their partner or improve their marriage in some way.

A mismatch blessed by heaven... If your husband does not share your faith, you may feel like you are walking a tightrope of spiritual survival - guarding the flame of your belief in Christ, yet unable to share it with the person you love most in the world. But your spiritually mismatched marriage can be a vibrant, blessed relationship where you’re free to grow in love with God and your man!

Over 90 percent of couples experience some level of tension around money. In fact, money issues are the number one stressor in relationships. So many books try to fix the surface problems, such as how to budget and what to prioritize when it comes to finances, but the issues go much deeper than just a simple spreadsheet. How do men and women view money differently? What do most couples fight about? How can they get on the same page?

Face it, your attitudes about marriage and the path to marriage are probably wrong. Some you've inherited, some you've simply bought - hook, line, and sinker - and some you've made up yourself. They have translated into bad action (or no action) in dating and relationships. But it's not too late; you can break the cycle of dating dysfunction and learn to honor marriage, marry well, and live intentionally while you wait.

Marriage is all about sharing: sharing space, sharing joys and sorrows, sharing hopes and dreams. Yet we often hold back a part of ourselves because we fear that being wholly transparent - about our past, our desires, our failures, our faults - will bring judgment, rejection, or even just unwanted friction to our relationship. We are afraid to be fully known. As a result, we never experience being fully loved. In this paradigm-shifting book, Ryan and Selena Frederick show you how to develop a see-through marriage, one that is marked by full transparency and confident vulnerability.

Feeling tired of romantic relationships with no purpose - or looking to put more spark in your long-term love? Pastor Michael Todd draws on the themes of Relationship Goals to give you a month of biblically rich "let’s go deeper" challenges designed just for couples. We’re not talking simple date ideas or tips on what flowers to buy. We’re talking daily Scripture, intentional questions, and victorious outcomes as you get real about seeking God’s goals for you individually and together.

In a world where men and women are constantly told they are not different, His Brain, Her Brain shows couples what they instinctively know - men and women are different, and these divinely designed differences, when understood, make a marriage stronger and happier.