Your Marriage Matters

Welcome!  Today we’re tackling a tough conversation: Money.  Stay with us to learn more!

**What are three things you like to spend money on and three things you think are a waste of money?

Listener Question of the Week:  You are always talking about Dave Ramsey’s course.  What are the things you like best about it?

Fun Question of the Week:  If money were no object, what would you be doing right now?

**New Prepare to Last marriage classes are starting up.  Visit www.riverpoint.org for more information.

Welcome!  I’m doing the podcast solo today, as Christie is a little under the weather.  Consider the following quote:  “We should all be a little bit embarrassed about who we were five years ago.”  What I mean by that is that we should never stop growing, developing, and transforming ourselves.  This thought fits into our discussion topic for today, which is primarily aimed at the men, but also can be a guideline for women as they seek a life partner.

**Three Things every man needs to pursue to be a great spouse or partner:

--Covenant Love says, “I will love you no matter what.”  Contract Love says, “I will love you IF . . .”

Listener Question of the Week:  I have some guy friends that like to go out together from time to time, and she doesn’t like it.  What do you think?

Fun Question of the Week:  What is the one thing you love most about Christie?

Welcome!  Today’s show is coming to you live from Branson, MO, because we are on the road.  Unfortunately, Jim is not feeling well and has been battling a cold.  His illness gives us the basis for our question to consider this week.

List three things I need to know about you when you aren’t feeling well.  Consider the following as you give your answer:

As you have this conversation, you will learn more about each other.  What do I need when I’m not feeling well?  What does my partner want when they are sick?  Now, think about it and discuss this topic with your partner.

Listener Question of the Week:  How do you know when you should see a doctor and when you should treat at home?

Fun Question of the Week:  What is your favorite comfort food and why?

Hey gang ...

Welcome to this week's episode of Your Marriage Matters for couples who are seriously dating or engaged to be married. We are dedicated to helping you build a healthy, vibrant relationship that will last a lifetime!

This week we are going to deal with the inevitable reality of the inevitable challenges and conflicts that will come up in our relationship! Trust us it is better to do it now rather than later. This week's conversation, from our 101 Conversations EVERY Couple Should Have Before They Get Married book, is as follows;

have you encountered in your relationship and how have you worked together to resolve them"?

In this podcast we are going to give you two really important reasons why this is an important conversation. And, we will give you a couple of real world techniques you can use to help you process differences in a positive and productive way.

When it is all said and done there is nothing wrong with having conflict. As a matter of fact we are really concerned when a couple says they don't fight or argue about anything! That is a big red flag!

The question becomes ... "are you fighting in your relationship or fighting for your relationship"? The first will kill your connection to each other and the latter will make it stronger!

We hope you enjoy this week's episode!

Welcome!  Today’s conversation is an easier one than some, but it is still vitally important.  

Consider the question:  What are three things that make for a great date and why?

Let the following ideas prompt your thoughts:

The results will be increased insight into your partner and more intention to the fun!  “Never, Ever Stop Dating!”

Listener Question of the Week:  What do we do if we don’t have a lot of similar hobbies?

Fun Question of the Week:  What are three things you think make for a great date?

Welcome!  Today’s topic comes from our book, 101 Conversations Every Couple Should Have Before They Get Married.  

List 10 qualities you look for in the marriage partner you will spend the rest of your life with.

This is an important, but challenging conversation and one that will take some time to accomplish.  It’s an opportunity to get insight into your partner’s expectations.  It will alert you to red flags and non-negotiables in your relationship.  Remember, the time to discover those non-negotiables is BEFORE you get married.

We all remember  “Y2K,” but, regarding marriage, think of “Why3A.”

Ask yourself the following questions to prompt your thoughts about your list of 10 qualities:

So, your challenge is to make the list, and then take the time to discuss it with your partner.  It will identify things that require heavy conversations.  Listen in for more!

Listener Question of the Week:  How do you create a BIG vision for your marriage?

Fun Question of the Week:  What is your biggest fear?

Welcome!  Today we’re addressing an important question; it’s so important that we’ve included it in our book, 101 Conversations Every Couple Ought to Have Before They Get Married.  

What are some of your favorite memories growing up?

This question is important for the following reasons:

The assignment is to write down 2-3 favorite memories, even if they aren’t all positive ones.  Discuss them together, because these are things you need to know about your future spouse.

Listener Question of the Week:  What are some of the red flags you see in couples that make you worry about them?

Fun Question of the Week:  If the house is burning down, but all people and pets are safe, what is one thing you would try to save?

Welcome!  We sometimes talk about “Team Jacobus,” but we really are a team, as any marriage should be.  A team is stronger when relying on each other, standing shoulder to shoulder to face whatever comes.  We’ve been working in our book and decided today to talk about an important topic in marriage:  Roles and Responsibilities.  Essentially, we are discussing how you function together to accomplish things in your household and your marriage.

Here is the question:  What are the strengths you bring to the marriage regarding roles and responsibilities?

We want to model this for you by listing some things that we respect about each other’s strengths:

Your assignment is to write down 3-4 things you admire and respect about each other.  Then have the discussion and share them with each other.  

As a result of this conversation, you will be able to categorize tasks and decide what will be hired out.  You will be an encouragement to each other and become strategic about running your household as a team.  It’s a win-win, so give it a try!  Thanks for joining us!

Listener Question of the Week:  Why is having a relationship so damn hard?

Fun Question of the Week:  What is your favorite chore around the house?

Welcome!  After attending Podcast Movement 2015 recently, we’ve learned about new things we want to bring to the podcast.  One of those is to have interviews with experts and counselors that can help all of us in marriage and relationships.  We start with those interviews today!  Jim is interviewing his first—and favorite—guest, Christie!

Christie shares the following about her growing up years and career:

You don’t want to miss Christie’s moving story that wraps up this episode!  It’s a beautiful true story every married person should hear about “Grace.”  Listen in for more!

Listener Question of the Week:  How do you handle the differences in your religious traditions?

Fun Question of the Week:  What types of games do you like to play with friends or family?

Welcome!  We’ve been traveling a lot lately, and we’ve just returned from the Podcast Movement 2015 in Fort Worth, TX.  We had a great time, met some great people and learned a lot about how to make this podcast better.  The best aspect of the conference was to attend TOGETHER.  You’ve heard us discuss the importance of putting yourself in a learning environment as a COUPLE, and we are thankful we were able to do so.

Here are some of the highlights of what we learned at the conference:

Attending the conference as a couple allowed us to strengthen our team, to share conversations and perspective, and to gain a shared vision for the future.

**Your assignment is to find three things that you can do together or learn about together.  Enter into each other’s world and interests; this will bring your relationship closer together.

Listener Question of the Week:  You guys talk a lot about learning.  I am a passionate learner; I love to read, take classes, and things like that.  My potential spouse doesn’t seem to be interested in any of those things or even in listening to this podcast, reading books, or learning at all!  What are your thoughts?

Another Learning Question:  What are 1-2 books that you’ve read in the last couple of years that have had an impact or that you’ve loved?