The Living Marriages Podcast | Effective Communication, Intimacy, Healthy Habits, Christian Counseling, Christian Parenting

"What are we even fighting about anymore?"
Have you ever wondered this when fighting with your spouse about money, the in-laws, or even what to have for dinner for the umpteenth time? While these issues matter, underneath the arguments are fundamental, unresolved pain points. As we trigger one another, we find ourselves spiralling in unhealthy conflict.
 
Matthew and Joanna Raabsmith of The Raabsmith Team experienced this firsthand before discovering a powerful, four-step tool to regulate the nervous system and move from pain to peace.
 
In this episode, you’ll learn:

The hidden pain fueling your daily marriage conflict.

How to practically regulate your nervous system mid-argument.

How God wants to step into your conflict to restore true intimacy.

Resources:

Connect with Matthew and Joanna: https://raabsmithteam.com/

Listen to the Raabsmiths' marriage story on the Living Marriages Podcast here.

Find Ron and Nan Deal's "The Mindful Marriage" here.

Get in Touch

If you'd like to get in touch with your feedback, prayer requests or episode ideas, drop us a line! info@livingmarriages.com

We are part of a non-profit ministry seeking to bring Christ's hope and help to marriages and families. If you'd like to support us with a charitable donation, please visit our website by clicking here.

Have you ever felt like you and your spouse have lost the "Spark?" That sense of connection, excitement, romance and curiosity that burned brightly in those early days of your relationship?

You are not alone. As the stress and busyness of life pile up, it's common for many couples to find themselves experiencing "roommate syndrome" where there is no open hostility or indifference but rather just an unintentional neglect of the bond that first connected you.

How do you rekindle that spark and re-discover the foundation of friendship that you once enjoyed? Join us for this insightful conversation as God breathes new life and re-ignites the bond you once enjoyed!

Resources

Here is the excellent article from the Gottman Institute on rekindling the spark in six steps, When You Feel Like Roommates. To this, we add the seventh step of "Pray Together."

 

Get in Touch

Have feedback or episode ideas? Need prayer or encouragement? Please get in touch with us. We'd love to hear from you! info@livingmarriages.com

You can also make a charitable donation to our non-profit ministry through our website here.

We recently had the pleasure of chatting with a couple who had been married for 60 years! When asked the one indispensable thing in their marriage, their answer was "friendship."

The Gottman Institute is celebrating 30 years of serving marriages and recently compiled a list of 30 things they've learned over the years about love. The number one thing? "Friendship is the foundation of lasting love."

On this episode we talk about:

The nature of God and why as his image-bearers we are made for friendship

The foundational importance of marital friendship and friendship with God

Why NOW is the time to start making time to cultivate your friendship once again

Resources

An article on why friendship keeps us healthy: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2023/06/cover-story-science-friendship

Get in touch

Want prayer or support to help you cultivate the friendship in your marriage? Get in touch with us! We'd love to hear from you: info@livingmarriages.com

Intimacy is one of our favourite topics at the Living Marriages Podcast and we've talked about many kinds of intimacy, both in and beyond the bedroom. On this episode, we talk about what it looks like to connect on an intellectual or interest level:

We define what intellectual intimacy is

How to connect even when your spouse's interest is not your own (including the appreciation of clouds)

Practical ideas for things you can do to build intellectual intimacy

Connect With Us

Do you have ideas for intellectual intimacy you can share with us and our listeners? Contact us! info@livingmarriages.com

Self-care is an extremely important part of being a healthy and present spouse and parent in any marriage and family. But what if what we're doing to care for ourselves is actually doing us and our marriage more harm than good?

In today's conversation we look at:

Why self-care may look different for different people

Why we need to remain open to the kind of self-care God is leading us into

Why self-care should not come at the expense of another

Next steps

What is self-care for you? How has God challenged or invited you to care for yourself so that you can care for others? Let us know! info@livingmarriages.com