Where to start? What do we do?

Step 1: Decide who will lead the sessions.

It could be the Pastor, but it doesn’t have to be. If you are the Pastor, don’t think implementing these sessions will fall solely on your shoulders. You could save yourself a lot of ministry hours if there is a gifted person who could facilitate these programs. As the Pastor, you certainly may be the one to lead because you want to be hands on, but don’t feel like you have to be.

Step 2: Decide when to start each program.

We recommend doing three programs a year. To determine when to do them, look at your calendar and determine what makes the most sense for your church. You could do one program each in the Fall, Winter and Spring, and then take the summer off, when most families are busiest.

Think in terms of a strategic calendar for outreach. When is your biggest outreach event? Those events will give you a great opportunity to recruit new people to attend these marriage enrichment programs.

Step 3: Decide which program to begin with.

Below you will see the three current courses that are available for viewing. Your group should start with one course, and complete it before moving on to the next. If you’re unsure of which course to start with, we recommend completing them in the order below.

Step 4: Decide on the schedule for each program.

Each course has between 5 and 6 sessions, with each session ranging from about 55-90 minutes. We suggest that whenever you begin the first program, you do one session per week for 5 weeks. What you’ll find is that the group comes together better and there’s more continuity that way.

The time you do this will depend on the drive pattern of your church. We recommend sometime in the early evening, around 6:00 p.m., so that couples can go out on a date afterwards. One good option is Wednesday evenings; it’s in the middle of the week and can serve as a good recharge time for couples.

After you finish each program, encourage each couple to spend one month focusing on what they learned in each weekly session, and how they can put it into practice.

Step 5: Promote the program

When promoting the program, just keep it simple. Put the five dates you will host the program on a poster and put those same dates in your newsletters. Make sure to tell people what your plan is to help them get ready before each session. Make sure to also share any babysitter possibilities, or a baby-sitter routine. And finally, share the date-night idea for couples to do after each session.

Bonus Step: Use this for Outreach and Small Group Ministry

If your church has small group ministry, then out of these marriage events, members that participated in each of these 5 week programs can continue another 5 week program as a small group of couples.Their agenda each week is going back to what they learned, the workbook and the same content (this time without the video) and telling each other:

  • How they’ve grown.
  • What they’re struggling with.
  • Ideas they found that are practical that they’ve practiced.
  • It becomes a small group resource.

Current Programs

Simply Marriage

Includes 5 video sessions

  • Become more curious and less frustrated with your spouse.
  • Learn to put your spouse and his/her happiness ahead of your own, as Jesus has done for you.
  •  Initiate a behavior change request, cut the negativity and communicate appreciation.
  • Build your intimacy in ways that many couples can only dream of: in your faith, in your friendship and in your sex and sensuality.
  • Break common patterns that war against your oneness: escalation, invalidation, negative interpretation and withdrawal/avoidance.

Sticky Marriage

Includes 5 video sessions

  • Go beyond being “stuck” and certainly beyond “stopping” to really “sticking together” in the full meaning and blessing of marriage.
  • Practice actions that will cultivate your commitment to each other.
  • Determine your family’s rallying cry. Discover what makes your family unique.
  • Learn to recognize “bids” for connection and three ways to respond to them that will help you make your marriage sticky.
  • Discover what makes your love different, and how you can make it last. There is power to keep loving.

Distracted Marriage

Includes 6 video sessions

  • Gain a clearer picture of how we will bring glory to God and joy to each other.
  • Identify distractions from that vision so we can more fully enjoy what we have.
  • Agree to ongoing actions that will help us overcome distractions and feel like we’re making progress toward our vision.

Healthy Marriage

Includes 6 video sessions

  • Analyze the basis of your relationship with God, discuss questions that will help you better know each other and commit to activities you can do together.
  • Identify four foes of friendship to your marriage, assess your fondness and admiration for each other and commit to ways you’ll express appreciation for each other..
  • Review the way God values you and practice and commit to actions that build trust in your marriage.

Mysterious Marriage

Includes 5 video sessions

  • Determine the biblical secret for living together in marriage. So many don’t know it. But first, recognize marriage the way it is today.
  • Access the power for marriage
  • Have a love for each other that is richer, deeper and less variable.
  • “Why get married? What’s the purpose?” Discover an answer that will help your marriage, others’ marriages and, even more important, help you pursue it better.
  • Discover how to tell the difference between really bad man/woman distinctions in marriage and really good ones.

 

Richer Marriage

Includes 6 video sessions

  • God communicates grace to us. Eliminate the kind of communication that makes your marriage poorer; practice habits to make your marriage richer.
  • God moved us from conflict with him to peace with him. Plan to move through your conflict with each other.
  • Theologians speak of four “causes” of salvation (unique roles). Learn from your personalities how to best fill the roles in your marriage.
  • We are not ashamed to discuss that which God was not ashamed to create. Plan actions to improve your sex life.
  • Jesus said plenty about money. Most couples spend plenty of time thinking about it. Get on the same page and keep a biblical view of your finances.

3 Payment Plans to Choose From

Includes all 33 video sessions

We’re not here for huge profits, just to spread the gospel and improve lives around the world. Choose the plan that fits your church below. Give your congregation Grace for Marriage this year and be worry free with our 100% money-back guarantee.