Marriage Articles

What Do You Think When You Hear “Happy Wife, Happy Life”?

Are You Fighting a Battle Your Spouse Doesn’t Even Know You Are Having?

Are You Fighting a Battle Your Spouse Doesn’t Even Know You Are Having?

Husbands and wives will find themselves in conflict with each other—that is undeniable. In fact, because the apostle Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 7:28 that those who marry “will have trouble in this life,” we can also conclude that some conflict within marriage is by God’s design.

Do You Have the Humility Necessary to Move First?

Do You Have the Humility Necessary to Move First?

When a husband and wife find themselves on yet another out-of-control Crazy Cycle—where feeling unloved, she reacts without respect; and feeling disrespected, he reacts without love—how do they decide who is going to be the first to stop reacting unlovingly or disrespectfully?

What Do You Think When You Hear “Happy Wife, Happy Life”?

What Do You Think When You Hear “Happy Wife, Happy Life”?

You’ve probably heard the phrase “happy wife, happy life” before. Maybe it’s in the context of something simple, like choosing what restaurant to eat at or not leaving dirty clothes on the bathroom floor.

Why Does a Wife Not Hear That Her Husband Needs Respect?

Why Does a Wife Not Hear That Her Husband Needs Respect?

The idea of unconditional respect for the husband has always been the Love and Respect message’s unique feature, based on Ephesians 5:33. Many books stress Paul’s instruction for husbands to love their wives (“each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself . . .”), but few spend equal space if any at all, to the rest of the verse (“. . . and the wife must respect her husband”).

How Is C.H.A.I.R.S. The Key to Having More Meaningful Conversations With Your Husband?

How Is C.H.A.I.R.S. The Key to Having More Meaningful Conversations With Your Husband?

Many wives share disappointment that their husbands rarely talk to them at a deeper level. “Emerson, when we were dating, we used to talk long into the night getting to really know each other. What happened to him?”

Why Does a Wife Not Hear That Her Husband Needs Respect?

How Is C.H.A.I.R.S. The Key to Having More Meaningful Conversations With Your Husband?

Your God-Given Power To Influence Your Marriage

Your God-Given Power To Influence Your Marriage

The key to motivating another person is meeting that person’s deepest need. Since Ephesians 5:33 reveals that a wife needs love and a husband needs respect, then the key to motivating a wife is to meet her need for love, and the fundamental way to energize a husband is meet his need for respect.

Why Communication Is NOT the Key to Your Marriage

Why Communication Is NOT the Key to Your Marriage

Someone who only speaks German cannot communicate with someone who only speaks Spanish. Each needs to learn the other's vocabulary. Communication can only happen when there is mutual understanding. Communication is not the key to marriage. Mutual understanding is the key to a successful marriage.

Respect Won Her Husband Back: A Wife’s Testimony

Respect Won Her Husband Back: A Wife’s Testimony

A wife wrote to me saying, “My husband has disconnected from our marriage. We were on the Crazy Cycle for years, and it got really bad this year. He had an emotional affair and is now convinced that we can never be happy together, can both eventually find happiness elsewhere, and he wants a divorce.“I've been trying the CHAIRS principle for 3 months and have gotten very little response.

Does God Intend to Use You as a Messenger of the Love and Respect Message?

Does God Intend to Use You as a Messenger of the Love and Respect Message?

Have you been infected with the disease of Love and Respect? Has the message of Ephesians 5:33 so contaminated you that it oozes from your pores? Are you so contagious that when you sneeze you infect others with the same Love and Respect disease? As you share the good things happening to you, does this create an enthusiasm in others to hear more?