Marriage Partnership articles from December 2003

Marriage Partnership archives from December 2003

What Ben Affleck did right.(From the Editor)(Editorial)
December 22, 2003... Take back the kitchen towels and that blender. Apparently, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez are no longer a couple. "Bennifer" (at least according to the latest tabloids) is a thing of the past--just days before their walk down the million-dollar...

Military bias?(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
December 22, 2003... While I applaud your coverage of the struggle facing military families ("Separated by War," Summer 2003), I was disappointed you didn't interview any female service members. I'm an Army Nurse Corps officer facing the possibility of deployment....

Praying about sex.(Letters)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2003... In the article "When Your Sex Drives Don't Match" (Fall 2003), you suggested for the "high-desire" spouse to pray about the situation, but you failed to mention this for the "low-desire" spouse. As a "low-desire" spouse, I struggled for...

Accepting infertility.(Letters)
December 22, 2003... My husband and I appreciated Marshall Allen's article "Married Without Children." We've been struggling with infertility for the past six years. So as Mr. Allen's article concluded, I found myself rejoicing for his family, but also wondering,...

Enjoy God's presence together.(Couple Minutes)(Cover Story)
December 22, 2003... * Visit a Christian bookstore. Buy a study Bible and use it. Take turns selecting Scripture and let footnotes and margin references lead you to related passages. * Listen to classical, music that honors God, or sing praise songs together....

Our prayer-interview.(Couples Devotional)
December 22, 2003... "If my people... will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven... " (2 Chronicles 7:14). After we'd been married 19 years, Bob began to take his relationship with God more...

You said it!(Couple Minutes)
December 22, 2003... "To marry a woman for her beauty is like buying a house for its paint." --Unknown "A successful marriage is an edifice that must be rebuilt every day." --Andre Maurois, French author and critic "Intimacy is being seen and...

Getting along in a blended family.(Couple Minutes)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2003... If you're in a second marriage, you're well aware that making one family out of two isn't easy. But there's hope! Check out these 9 tips: 1. Families don't blend. Not like ice cream or fruit drinks, anyway. But more like patchwork quilts....

The love shack gap?(Couple Minutes)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2003... Love and sex are more important to a happy marriage for men in their late 50s and early 60s than at any other time in their lives, reveals a recent survey of 1,000 men and women by John Gottman and Reader's Digest. But the bad news? That's when...

Right in tune.(Snapshot)(Interview)
December 22, 2003... Derek Webb and Sandra McCracken, both Christian singer/songwriters, have been married three years and live in Nashville. Derek, a former member of Caedmon's Call, released his first solo album, She Must and Shall Go Free (INO Records), last...

Fighting fair.(Couple Minutes)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2003... Try these constructive rules for your F.I.G.H.T.S. Face each other. Don't argue from different rooms or while watching TV. Make eye contact. Ignore distractions. Don't bring up everything about him that drives you nuts. Guard your...

Knock, knock ...(Couple Minutes)(Humor in marriage)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2003... Want a secret to making it through those rough times of marriage? Tell your spouse a joke. Yep. Researchers at Arizona State University West interviewed happily married couples who'd been together, on average, 50 years, and round most cited...

Horsing around.(That Thing We Do; equestrian ministry: www.thehorse lady.org.)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2003... People call me "The Horse Lady." I'm involved with an equestrian ministry, which means I use horses to reach people for Christ. But even though I'm the one out front, doing most of the talking, none of it could happen without my husband, Alan....

No more forgets.(Couple Minutes)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2003... Forget your anniversary or your spouse's birthday again? Or do you just get so busy you keep getting distracted from romance? If so, check out "After I Do," a special free service at www.RobbinsBros.com. In the "After I Do" exclusive, a wife...

The total money makeover.(Between the Covers; advice from financial expert Dave Ramsey )(Interview)
December 22, 2003... In a recent MP online survey, when asked the question, "Are you prepared for a financial crisis?" almost half of the 997 respondents replied "No." So MP asked financial expert and radio host Dave Ramsey for some advice. Here's what Dave,...

"Me" time or "we" time? I relax by curling up with a good book. My husband thinks I'm shutting him out.(Starting out: what I wish someone had told me)(Column)
December 22, 2003... When Dylan and I first married, our arguments weren't over sex, money, or gender roles. Instead, we quarreled over how to balance our needs for solitude and companionship. Our biggest fight? About my reading habits. I've always been a...

I'm blamed for everything.(Couple Counsel)
December 22, 2003... Q. My husband and I have been married for a year. When we've had differences, we end up blaming each other and we're worse off than we started. When he's talking I listen and suggest ways to resolve the problem--but to him my suggestions are my...

Too busy for his health? When serious health issues threatened their marriage, Roy and Nancy Gibbs had to discover what was truly important.(Work it out: real couples, real solutions)(Column)
December 22, 2003... Roy's Side: I have things to do! I'd never been seriously ill. But the day I felt a severe tightness in my chest, I knew it was time to go to the hospital. When I saw the anxious expression on the physician's face, I knew something was...

To neglect is divine: at times the best thing to say is nothing at all.(Soul to soul: where faith and marriage meet)(Column)
December 22, 2003... A healthy marriage demands a fair amount of neglect. It took me a long lime to understand this, and even longer to have the grace to put it into practice. When my wife, Barbara, and I first married, a lot of almost-right marital advice was in...

Spiritually alone? 10 ways to motivate your disinterested spouse.
December 22, 2003... Recently, I spoke with two women who were concerned about connecting spiritually with their husbands. One woman's husband wasn't a Christian; the other woman's husband was, but wasn't interested in growing spiritually. They asked, "How can we...

Men are computers women are cell phones: can we stay connected?
December 22, 2003... "I don't know how we're going to sort out tonight's schedule," I gushed as my husband, Richie, came through the door. "You're late--and Andrew has a game an hour away. One of us has to get him there by 7:00. Jordan has a game here. Kaley is...

Cash crunch: the 5 stages of financial recovery.
December 22, 2003... As a child I loved to play Monopoly. I'd spend all the money I had trying to win. Now I realize that as adults we sometimes do the same thing. We play with our finances as if it were Monopoly money. In many households, ATM withdrawals account...

Christmas by design: this holiday, slow down and make your home a stress-free zone. Here's how.(An MP Holiday Special)
December 22, 2003... Chestnuts roasting on an open fire? Jack Frost nipping at your nose? Yeah, right. More like SUVs racing through a parking lot, and Land's End nipping at your checkbook. At least that's how it is for many of us during the Christmas holidays......

Scents and sensibility: bring all 5 senses into your yuletide celebration.(An MP Holiday Special)
December 22, 2003... Twinkling lights, the fresh scent of evergreen, jingling bells, a cozy fire. They all say Christmas. As you plan for a simple Christmas in your home, come to your senses--literally. Delighting the senses in quick, inexpensive ways can make your...

Yours, mine, and ours: make your own traditions--and still keep the peace.(An MP Holiday Special)
December 22, 2003... "Over the river and through the woods, to Grandmother's house we go." Every Thanksgiving and Christmas, couples stuff food, presents, luggage, and maybe kids and the family dog into the car to drive across town or fly across the country to...

12 days of romance: try this classic twist!(An MP Holiday Special)
December 22, 2003... I found my keys, grabbed the gift list, mad dashed out of the house with my two boys, anticipating a hectic day of holiday shopping at time mall. As I opened the door of the van. I spied a tiny note taped to the steering wheel with something...

Ready, set, grow: it's good to solve problems and move on, but you can also strengthen your marriage in the process.(Column)
December 22, 2003... You don't have to be married long to discover that relationships are difficult and problems inevitable. You'll experience disagreements that will at times force you to acknowledge the person you married seems to have disappeared--and been...

Anti-climax: can't have an orgasm? You're not the only one. Here's help.
December 22, 2003... What's wrong with me? Gail thought. Why won't my body do what I want it to? When Gail came to see me, with some embarrassment she confessed, "I have trouble having an orgasm." She said her husband was also frustrated because he wanted...

I was married to Jekyll and Hyde: my husband's bipolar disorder was wrecking our family. Could I handle his quick-change personality?(Back from the brink: true story of how a marriage was saved)
December 22, 2003... Restraining orders, liens, and broken belongings were furthest from my mind as I sat in my counselor's office sharing all the doors God was opening for my fiance and me. Journal these stories," she told me. "One day you may forget how God...

Is cybersex cheating?(Real Sex)
December 22, 2003... Q. Since our daughter was born 14 months ago, our sexual and emotional intimacy has declined. This week I found out that my husband's having cybersex with other women. I can't begin to describe my emotions, and I'm having difficulty forgiving...

What I learned at the mall: when my husband watched our toddler while I shopped, he did more than he could imagine.(Ever After: marriage for a lifetime)
December 22, 2003... A few years ago, my husband, Greg, and I were shopping with out then 18-month-old daughter, Taylor. I was lugging her around and trying to browse the aisles, and it was starting to wear on me. Greg noticed my frustration and asked, "Is there...