LoveWorks

Creating Thriving Marriages

Hey friends! 👋🏼 Are you ready to take your marriage to the next level and cultivate a relationship that flourishes with love, joy, and fulfillment? Today, I want to share some valuable insights and practical tips for creating a thriving marriage. 💍🌺

1️⃣ Prioritize Open and Honest Communication: Communication is the foundation of any successful relationship. Make it a priority to actively listen to your partner, express your feelings, and engage in open dialogue. Remember, effective communication involves both speaking and truly hearing what your partner has to say.

2️⃣ Cultivate Trust and Mutual Respect: Trust is the cornerstone of a thriving marriage. Build trust by being reliable, keeping your promises, and demonstrating loyalty. Respect your partner's opinions, boundaries, and individuality. Embrace the fact that you are a team, and always support each other.

3️⃣ Nurture Emotional Intimacy: Emotional connection is vital in a marriage. Take time to understand your partner's emotional needs, provide comfort and support during challenging times, and celebrate each other's successes. Show empathy, be vulnerable, and create a safe space for open expression of emotions.

4️⃣ Keep the Romance Alive: Never underestimate the power of romance! Surprise your partner with thoughtful gestures, plan regular date nights, and keep the flame of passion burning. Small acts of love and affection can go a long way in strengthening the bond between you.

5️⃣ Embrace Compromise and Flexibility: Marriage requires compromise and flexibility. Learn to find common ground, negotiate differences, and be willing to adapt. Remember, you're a team, and finding solutions that work for both of you is essential for long-term happiness.

6️⃣ Continuously Invest in Your Relationship: Just like any other endeavor, a thriving marriage requires investment. Spend quality time together, explore shared hobbies, and create new experiences. Attend workshops or seek professional guidance if needed. Never stop learning and growing together.

7️⃣ Celebrate Each Other's Individuality: While you're a unit, you're also individuals. Encourage each other's personal growth, dreams, and passions. Support your partner's goals and aspirations, and celebrate their unique qualities that make them who they are.

Remember, creating a thriving marriage is an ongoing journey that requires commitment, patience, and love. It's about building a strong foundation and continuously nurturing the connection between you and your partner. Together, you can create a love story that stands the test of time! ✨

Feel free to share your thoughts, experiences, and any additional tips you have for fostering a thriving marriage in the comments below. Let's inspire each other to create lifelong love stories!

Love This ❤️

My parents have been making life easier for me my whole life. And given the chance, I intend to do the same for their grandchildren.

Not "easy.” My parents did not overprotect me. They did not swoop in to solve all my problems for me. They did not try to shield me from real life. They did not try to make life artificially painless.

But they made life easier. They still do.

When I text them and ask, "Do you know where I can get some good boxes to use for charitable clothing donations?" my mom shoots back, "We've got some in the attic. I'll bring them for you." And then they show up in the back seat of my car in the church parking lot. (The boxes, not my parents.)

When I'm pretty sure I've blown out the gears on my hand mixer while making a double batch of caramel buttercream, I send it (the mixer, not the buttercream) to my dad to confirm its demise, which he does...and then an hour later, an article about "best hand mixers including some that can handle bread dough" shows up in my email in-box.

When my husband and I needed backups to get busy children from where they were to where they needed to be, with dinner and a stop at home to change clothes in between, my parents jumped into the gap and kept things humming along.

They've made life easier by doing things for me that I can do for myself. (I can get my own boxes.)
They've made life easier by doing things for me I can't do for myself. (I can't add a new outlet on our enclosed front porch to plug in the string lights. But my dad can. And did. Thanks, Dad.)

I hope with all my heart to follow in their footsteps.
I intend to lighten my big kids' loads. I intend to fill in some gaps. I intend to smooth some rough edges. I intend—as much as it's within my power and for my children's good—to do what has been done to and for me. I intend to repay my parents forward.

At some point, there may be a switch. I know grown children who are now doing all they can to make life easier for their parents who can no longer make life easier for them. This is not easy at all. It is the hardest thing they've ever done. These children are trying to make life easier for parents whose minds or memories or bodies or spirits are failing. They are trying to repay love backward...to do what was done for them to and for the people who did it.

Too, I know so many grown children who do not have a story of life made easier to tell.

They have parents who made (and make) life harder for them. My heart breaks and aches for them. If this is you, my heart breaks and aches for you.

But as parents ourselves, we are still writing our stories with our children. We still have the chance to earn this telling by them: "My parents made life easier for me."

This is not enabling. This is not co-dependence. This is not stunting growth. This is relationship. This is love. This is life. It's rarely easy for long. But lived together, it can be made easier.

Chocoholic Mama

“There’s nothing more grace filled than reaching a place where you can pray for peace for those who may not have represented it in your own life.”

Chris Christensen was one of our long-time customers. His influence on our staff is everlasting. His appreciation for resurrection day is a legacy that continues to inspire us. He would say “Happy Easter” for EVERY holiday. He would follow up that statement by saying, “Without Easter, nothing else mattered.”
On this Sunday, we honor Jesus and the loving memory of Chris. To his family and everyone, we wish you a very Happy Easter. Because without Easter, nothing else matters.



Photo: BestBodiesforLife