relationships Archives

Bringing Laughter to Your Marriage

Today, I’ve got a simple idea that will help you build a great marriage. It’s fun, too.

Laugh together.

Studies show that couples who laugh are healthier, happier, and more connected to each other. Even little giggles between you and your spouse can play a meaningful part in creating bonds that you’ll share forever.

That’s because laughter is a powerful connecter. In fact, at its heart, laughter is mostly about connection. It’s only partially about humor. Studies show that we laugh more when we’re with other people than when we’re alone.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, marriage, relationships February 18, 2020 by Jim Daly

How to Find a Good and Godly Spouse

Dating can be tough. You probably already know that if you’re single. It’s no small matter pursuing a relationship with someone who has the potential to be your spouse one day.

What is God saying to you about marriage?

I made a commitment in my early 20s to serve the Lord through singleness if that were His plan for me. On a Wednesday night about a year and a half later, I encountered God in a way unlike anything I’d experienced before or since.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, relationships, singleness February 3, 2020 by Jim Daly

Rocking Your Grandparenting Years

One writer called grandparenting “the greatest job on earth, handed to you wrapped in a blanket.”

Friends and colleagues of mine who are grandparents tell me it’s a blast.

But they also tell me grandparenting can be a challenge.

Like, how do you stay connected when you live far away from your adult children and grandchildren?

Or how do you maintain a healthy relationship with your adult children? This is a new season of life for both of you.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, parenting, relationships January 29, 2020 by Jim Daly

Making Daily Choices to Love Your Spouse

Theresa had a stroke 18 years ago. She lost control over her hands. Which means for all these years she’s struggled to do simple things in life, like styling her own hair. That’s why when she goes to the beauty salon, she leaves with a smile. She feels beautiful.

The trouble is, as soon as she washes her hair it falls flat, and she can’t get it to look the way her stylist does. Which means, until her next hair appointment comes around, Theresa doesn’t smile as much.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, marriage, relationships December 27, 2019 by Jim Daly

Sharing the Gospel Through Hospitality

A couple of years ago, we shared Dr. Rosaria Butterfield’s dramatic conversion testimony. In the late ‘90s, she was professor of English and queer theory at Syracuse University in New York. She was living proudly as a lesbian and feminist and was an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ rights.

Her turn to faith came about from what she calls “radically ordinary hospitality.” That’s where you open your home and your life to neighbors, friends, and strangers and intentionally share your faith.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, hospitality, relationships December 17, 2019 by Jim Daly

Enjoying Marriage at Any Age

“For a good time, call HOME!”

That’s not a bumper sticker (although it could be). It’s actually Ted Cunningham’s way of encouraging men and women to invest in their marriage.

You get out of your relationship what you put into it. That means enjoying life and marriage is a decision – a choice you make – not something you achieve by passively sitting back and hoping will come your way.

Compatibility isn’t an accident. It’s something you create in your relationship by choosing to invest your time and resources.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, marriage, relationships December 16, 2019 by Jim Daly

Growing Your Marriage in Times of Stress

Does your marriage stress you out?

If not, there’s still a good chance that you’re bringing stress into your marriage.

Either way, how do you handle it?

The natural inclination for many couples is to seek stress relief in non-relational ways that enable them to hide from each other – things like drugs and alcohol, or even behaviors like shopping, gambling, excessive cleaning, or binge-watching television – all of which lead to addiction, unhealthy obsessions, or lashing out at other people.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, marriage, relationships December 3, 2019 by Jim Daly

The Beautiful Struggle to Forgive

Emmy Award-winning sports journalist and former ESPN producer Jason Romano remembers the day he got the phone call. How could he forget?

On the other end was his father, who was in tears with terrible news. Patty, his second wife and Jason’s stepmother, had been killed in a house fire. Jason was devastated.

Then he discovered it was all a lie.

His father had been drunk and made up the whole story. For money? For sympathy?

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, relationships November 26, 2019 by Jim Daly

Are You a Good Listener?

Pastor Ted Cunningham says, “Social media is a place where people share their opinions without sticking around for the conversation.”

He’s right. A lot of people like to share their opinions, but few like to listen. Beyond social media, that’s also a big problem in marriage, in parenting, and in interactions with friends and extended family.

Listening has become synonymous with approval, agreement, and wholesale acceptance of someone’s opinion. The natural response, then, is to talk over people and to express our point of view to the exclusion of all others.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, relationships November 25, 2019 by Jim Daly

Understanding the Two Different Sides of Love

Skyscrapers are amazing feats of engineering. They need to be strong enough to resist the forces that come against them, like gravity and wind. That’s why skyscrapers are built with steel.

They also need to be flexible enough to withstand the forces that come against them … like gravity and wind. That’s why architects design skyscrapers with a certain amount of sway.

Strength and softness. The two sides of a superstructure. Two sides of love as well.

Topics: Family and Home Tags: broadcast, marriage, parenting, relationships November 22, 2019 by Jim Daly