Hey Friends! I’m super excited for our West Michigan Summer Bible Study which starts TOMORROW (yay!) – not to mention some exciting “Only God” announcements to share with you! While I work on finalizing my teaching notes, enjoy this repeat 🙂

Hi Friends!!

Welcome to Marriage Monday!

My friend Julie from Come Have A Peace shares Marriage encouragement every Monday, and I’m pleased to join in the fun today!

Today I’m wondering…

How do you keep the spark alive in a marriage??

I was reflecting on this question a lot over the weekend as we celebrated the wedding of John’s brother Jim to Gwen (my new sister-in-law ~ woo hoo!)

The wedding ceremony was beautiful ! Not to mention, the wedding party consisted of a handsome best man and a gang of adorable kids ~ also known as mine! 🙂

The outdoor reception was absolutely breathtaking! It was held at Gwen’s family’s cottage located on Lake Michigan, overlooking the sandy beach – complete with fireworks over the lake at the end of the night – breathtaking!


On our drive home from the reception, I was thinking….what would be the Top 5 things I would share with a newly married couple about “Keeping the Spark Alive” in a marriage.

Not that I’m a marriage expert, but after 11 years of marriage with my husband (and still head over heels with my man too!) ~ here are my thoughts…

1. Make time for each other every day.

John and I try to have 15 minutes of “face time” (I call it “honey time”) where we just chat…about our days, our feelings, etc.. The kids know mom and dad need their “honey time”. If we are too busy to connect 1:1, we are too busy and something must go from our schedule!

2. Look for ways to love/serve him and put his needs first.

Even in the midst of a crazy full house with 4 kids and a loud dog, I ask God to give me eyes to see how I can serve John. I try and make his favorite meals. I keep his favorite little goodies in the house. I lift him in prayer.

When John comes home from work, I ask about his day at work (and really listen). I intentionally take the kids on bike rides so he can relax or carve out time so he can “putz” out in the yard. I’ve also learned to pay attention to his “love language” and keep his bucket filled. Overall lesson – putting his needs above my own.

3. Greet him each day with a hug and a kiss.

This has not always been easy ~ especially when we had 3 kids in diapers! But I strive each day to be out of my gym clothes, lipstick on, and ready to greet John with a hug and a kiss when he gets home from work. 🙂 It helps set the tone of our night.

Truth be told, I have to race my dog to see who reaches John first, but I’m pretty fast these days!

4. Date each other, and remember to take “mini moons“.

I’ll be honest, it takes a lot of work and scheduling to get away with John, but it is so worth it! Having time together, just the two of us, definitely helps keep the sparks alive in our marriage!

5. Laugh together!

I love laughing with my John. One example…he likes to make funny faces when I try to take our picture together. What a jokester ~ but he makes me crack up every time! Laughter is good medicine! (And I always warn him, “this one’s going on the blog!)

What about for you?? How do you keep your marriage sparks alive?? I’d love to hear from you!!

Thanks for stopping by *She Sparkles*. Have a wonderful, joy-filled day!!

 
P.S. Andy Stanley shared a great teaching at Willowcreek called “Staying in Love” if you’d like to explore this further. You can watch it here.

P.S.S. Thanks for 11 years, honey. 🙂 Looking forward to many more years together…..

Hey friend —
 
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