Married Couples
Seven Habits of Effective Communicators
Almost everyone agrees that communication – good communication – is essential to successful relationships. But what constitutes ‘good’ communication? The answer to that all depends on our goals, which will be different for various relationships and dependent on the circumstances. If our goal is to give clear instructions to an employee, it will call for…
Read More#10 Forgiveness
In this episode we talk about forgiveness – what it is, what it isn’t, how to do it, and why it’s necessary. Forgiveness is the decision to let go of bitterness and negative feelings and thoughts towards somebody who hurt us and replace them with compassionate feelings and thoughts. When we forgive, we accept that…
Read MoreWar and Peace on the Home Front
Every nation remembers the sacrifice of their war veterans with a Memorial Day. Thinking about your marriage: is it more of a battlefield than the safe harbour it is intended to be? Through our work with couples, we often encounter those in embattled relationships. They’ve become trapped in a fractious pattern where almost every interaction…
Read MoreAin’t Marriage Grand!
What makes for an epic marriage? A marriage that faces and transcends challenges and obstacles, that has an interior resilience and grace that comes from the God who is always ready to encourage us. We recently attended two weddings of close family friends. This time, a different part of the ceremony really stood out for…
Read MoreResurrecting Our Marriages
Easter Sunday – the highpoint of the Christian calendar celebrating Christ’s resurrection from the dead. But what does this day, this event, have to teach us as married couples? Several years ago, we were invited onto a TV breakfast show to talk about marriage. We are all familiar with the format; people interviewed on couches…
Read More#9 Managing Differences
Different personalities. Different upbringing. Different education. Different sexes. Sometimes different ethnic or religious background. With so many differences between us, is it any wonder that making decisions as a couple is complicated and sometimes conflictual. We unpack the SmartLoving framework for managing differences and making couple decisions. Guest: Byron Pirola Francine’s husband they have been…
Read MoreThe Family as Key Evangeliser
We were struck recently by an old quote that somehow felt like a timely reminder to us as we progress through Lent: “The Church doesn’t have a mission: the Mission has a Church”. In 1975, Pope Paul Vi published Evangelium Nuntiandi in which he declared that “Evangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation proper…
Read MoreThat Romantic Atmosphere
On Friday afternoon we went on a bush walk with Byron’s work colleagues. Although we were with other people, we so enjoyed the time together. Walking is remarkably therapeutic for us… perhaps it’s the natural environment or maybe it’s simply the absence of the constant phone, email and text distraction. Whatever it is, is not…
Read MoreThe Daily ‘I do’ When You’d Rather Not
At a recent business conference, a speaker made an offhand remark about having to recommit to her marriage vows every day. It was in the context of a discussion about the challenges of change management and how reforming a company culture requires persistence and recommitment in the face of setbacks and resistance. It was an…
Read MoreMarriage in the Wilderness
It’s Lent – the season that recalls one of the great wilderness events in the Scriptures: Jesus fasting and being tempted for 40 days. What insights can we draw from this event for our marriage? We’ve heard the story many times: following his baptism in the Jordan River by John, Jesus spends forty days in…
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