On Going Support

Pulpit talks are effective in raising awareness among your regulars who may become participants and also for marshalling prayer and practical support. Many people feel self-conscious about signing up for a ‘marriage course’, believing that it signals that their marriage is in trouble.

Use your pulpit talks to dispel this myth by having past participants share their experience of struggle and recovery. It is tremendously important that we provide a witness of married love as a work in progress – this will help reset the shame culture around marriage difficulties to one of proactive engagement and community support.

A heartfelt appeal from your pastors about the importance of marriage, it’s role in the life of the community and its spiritual relevance can have high impact. As a father figure, and a spiritual authority, reminding couples of their responsibility to actively nurture their marriage is a vital aspect of normalising marriage formation.

We suggest that the team review and workshop any talks to ensure that they stay within boundaries of respect for the privacy of the spouses and avoid inadvertent offense.