Many couples say communication is their biggest issue—but more often, it’s a symptom of something deeper: broken trust, unmet expectations, or simply a lack of emotional safety. In this episode, Brad and Marilyn sit down with therapist Lauren Early to unpack the core issues couples face and how to rebuild connection, even in the toughest seasons.

They discuss why love as a choice—not just a feeling—is critical for long-term intimacy, how small acts of intentionality restore trust, and how spiritual and emotional health directly impact your marriage. Whether you’re thriving or just hanging on, this honest, hope-filled episode will help you shift your mindset, pursue each other again, and grow stronger together.

🔑 KEY IDEAS:
• Why emotional safety and trust are the foundation of a healthy marriage
• What couples really mean when they say “we struggle to communicate”
• How to rebuild trust after emotional withdrawal or shutdown
• The power of sacrificial love and why “love is a choice” matters
• How spiritual health impacts emotional intimacy
• Why marriage takes intentionality, not just chemistry
• How to pursue your spouse when life gets busy or stressful
• Tips from a Christian counselor for navigating tough seasons
• The discipline of regular date nights and how they strengthen marriage

KEY VERSES:
📖 Proverbs 18:2 - A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.
📖 Proverbs 4:23 - Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.
📖 1 Peter 3:7 - Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
📖 Luke 18:1–5 - And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, “Give me justice against my adversary.” For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, “Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.

📖 Luke 6:35 - But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.

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