Dating
Affirmation
Consistent, sincere affirmation has the capacity to heal the wounds of inadequacy from which so many of us suffer. It communicates acceptability and lovableness. It lifts us up, and helps us feel better about ourselves. However, the power of affirmation is not limited to the recipient only. The person making the affirmation is also transformed.…
Read MoreSmartLoving
Loving the way my fiancé likes to be loved Every person experiences love in a unique way. Some gestures of love will more powerfully communicate love to you than others. For example, some people feel close and connected when they can physically touch the other person. Others demonstrate love through words of affirmation or affection,…
Read MoreLove as Gift
In our culture, ‘love’ is generally seen to be an ‘emotion’. We fall into love and we fall out of it. Love is something that just happens to us; we can’t help falling in and out of love. In fact, ‘love’ is a choice. True love is a conscious, deliberate choice to make a gift…
Read MoreTo Cherish and Respect
Each of you, however, should love [agape] his wife as himself, and let every wife respect her husband. Eph 5:33 When St Paul wrote these words 2000 years ago he was keenly aware of the differences between the sexes and so he deliberately gave husbands and wives different instructions on how to live a successful…
Read MoreIn the Image of God
Created Male & Female Our masculinity and femininity are completely integrated with our personhood. They are stamped into our spirituality, hard-wired into our brains, ingrained in our personality and manifested in and through every part of our bodies. “So God created humankind in his image” Gen 1:27 To be human, is to be sexual. Our physiological…
Read MoreOn a Mission to Love
Every couple wants to avoid divorce and get along without too many fights. A successful marriage however, is much more than just this; it is a life-long union in which both spouses flourish as individuals and enjoy a deep and passionate intimacy. Thinking only in terms of ‘avoiding divorce’ is very limited. It’s rather like…
Read MoreFrancis: Three Magic Words
Three Magic Words On St Valentine’s Day this year, Pope Francis gathered with 20,000 Engaged Couples to encourage them in their journey. Reflecting on the ‘art’ of married life, Francis noted that it is “a patient, beautiful and fascinating journey” which doesn’t end when we win over each other’s heart. On the contrary it is…
Read MoreThe One Flesh Union
It can be hard to get our heads around the amazing gift that Jesus made of himself by dying on the cross for our salvation. We are told that it was a personal sacrifice, that if we were the only one in need, he would have still gone through with it – his love for…
Read MoreVideo: The Sexy Lie
“Caroline Heldman, the chair of the Politics department at Occidental College, explains to her audience what sexual objectification is and why girls are taught that it can be empowering when the reality is far from that. This video is meant for both men and women. We all need to be more informed in order for…
Read MoreGrowing in Love
The popularity of St Valentine’s Day grew out of the joy of celebrating romantic married love. The celebration also encourages us to renew and develop that love. God is love and this year we focus on one particular aspect of deepening the love of a couple, whether they are engaged or married – that is,…
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