The Nine Attitudes that Will Strengthen Your Marriage

The Beatitudes are a beloved part of Matthew’s Gospel. They’re eight blessings Jesus offered to His audience – and to us – to remind us of the blessings we can enjoy when our lives are committed to God.

On today’s broadcast, you’ll hear a recorded message from popular speaker and pastor Mark Gungor, who used that framework as a catalyst for what he calls the nine “‘Be’ Attitudes” of marriage. These are specific attitudes that can help you and your spouse build a successful relationship.

Here are the nine in a nutshell:

1) Be nice. You and your spouse will have disagreements and issues you need to discuss, but you can still be civil with one another.

2) Be content. Your spouse can’t “make” you happy. Stop waiting for everything and everyone to be perfect all the time. Enjoy your journey through life.

3) Be connected. Marriage was never designed to be two people on an island all by themselves. Have couples who are friends with whom you feel comfortable sharing your lives. Spend time together, eat dinner, have a barbecue, and talk life through.

4) Be prepared. Marriage is tough. But anything worth having is difficult. That’s why you want to find someone of character. Beauty has a shelf life. Character will last a lifetime. Marriage is about doing life together.

5) Be proactive. People who have good marriages have them on purpose. You reap what you sow.

6) Be clear. Your spouse sees life differently, so you have to communicate your needs clearly in a way they understand.

7) Be doers. You have to be willing to do the right things. Simply thinking and feeling the right things doesn’t cut it. You have to do it, or it’s of no value.

8) Be patient. Marriage is a dance that is perfected over time.

9) Be dead. You’ll definitely want to hear Mark’s explanation for this one. In short, God wants to kill you. Not the physical you, but the selfish you.

Mark will explain each of these in full on today’s show. As always, his talk is filled with humor that will leave you laughing and unforgettable illustrations and lessons that will leave you equipped to thrive – not just survive – in your marriage.

Mark is the lead pastor of Celebration Church, a multi-site church with four campuses in Wisconsin, and has been married to Debbie for more than 40 years.

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Topics: Family and Home Tags: family, marriage, relationships January 25, 2016 by Jim Daly with Paul Batura