Session 1 – Creation/Fall: Very Good Gone Bad
God gave man and woman a commission to be fruitful, multiply, and steward His creation. Our marriages are to mirror what God does by creatively shaping and bringing order from chaos. Satan, just as he did with Eve, tempts us to put ourselves in God’s place and to believe that God doesn’t have our best interests at heart. Let’s be challenged to exalt God in our marriages and see our marriages in the context of a greater reality and spiritual war.
Session 2 – Redemption: Rock Salted Communication
We are told to speak salty, life-giving words, but marital challenges often stretch us and reveal hearts unwilling to yield to the Lord’s call to edify one another. Come and consider how to lovingly relate to one another given differences in perspectives, styles, and personalities and be encouraged towards purposeful, edifying communication.
Session 3 – Biblical Conflict Resolution: Kiss and Make Up
Satan is the master of chaos and conflict, but Christ redeemed us to bring us to a place where “steadfast love and faithfulness meet and righteousness and peace kiss” (Ps. 85:10). Sadly, many couples do not find themselves enjoying the peace the Prince promises. Let’s learn what godly conflict resolution looks like and address common challenges to unity such as pride, self-defensiveness, anger, and fear.
Session 4 – Marital Intimacy and Oneness: First Things First – Steve presents to the husbands
Husbands are often told that one of their key tasks is to “wash their wives in the Word.” This is often interpreted as leading family devotions and encouraging family members to read their Bibles. We’ll learn instead how important it is for us to know our wives and to have a full-life, full-orbed approach to washing them in the Word throughout the day by our words, actions, and priorities. This foundation must be built first, in order to experience true, meaningful intimacy and oneness with our wives. We’ll also learn what motivates our wives, how to bear with our wives’ fatigue, hormones, health, stage of life, etc., and how to practice servanthood, tenderness, and self-sacrifice through it all.
Session 4 – When My Beloved Comes Knocking – Wendy presents to the wives
Physical intimacy doesn’t always come as naturally or easily as we expect it should. Questions arise like, “What should I do when my beloved comes knocking and I’m fatigued, out-of-sorts, or just “not in the mood?” Let’s discuss practical ways of turning our hearts and bodies towards our husbands as we learn to grow in marital oneness to the glory of God.
Session 5 – Building a Better Marriage: Swing the Hammer
Like weeds left to grow around our homes and paint allowed to chip on the trim, our marriages and families will grow into disrepair if we simply believe that the “status quo” is sufficient. Let’s talk about a vision for building homes where individuals grow relationally with God; husbands and wives become allies in the spiritual war; adoration and cherishing define our relating to one another; and where we live proactively rather than reactively as we fulfill God’s calling in each stage of our marriages.
Session 6 – The Mission of Marriage: Proclaiming the Gospel through Marriage
While Ephesians 5 is a common chapter about marriage, Paul’s entire letter to the church at Ephesus informs us about the purpose of marriage and what God has saved us from and to. Using this important book of the Bible, let’s explore together the resources He provides and the vision He casts for evangelistic marriages that impact the world for eternity.
