by Phil Smidt, Pastor at Mars Hill Church in Seattle
We Need Marriage Ministry
My wife and I recently celebrated our 18th anniversary, finally reaching adulthood in our marriage. God has been gracious to us, as we have experienced marital growing pains of all sorts from my wife Jen’s toddler-like tantrums to my own teenage-esque legalisms.
We are grateful God has been committed to growing us up in relationship with him and each other.
Every person pursuing marriage and married couple is in a phase of maturity and character development where they need godly instruction and encouragement.
But, if the church isn’t providing that for them, who will?
Without a strong vision of marriage from church leadership, people will turn elsewhere for their marital cues and cures.
When the ...
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Spiritual, Physical and Mental Health of the Planter and Family
Planting a church places a heavy burden on planters and their families. Most planters indicate that planting is one of the hardest things they've ever done. Those who survive are quick to highlight how discouraging and lonely it can be. The result is a fragile foundation for dealing with the discouragement and loneliness of church planting.
Unresolved relationships and weaknesses in the marriage will often surface in the church-planting season. Simmering problems in marriage and family began to boil with the added pressure and stress of planting a church. A planter’s faith and commitment is challenged. God often uses the challenges for good to grow the planter and his family or Satan can use to bring them down.
A ...
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Posted in: Spiritual Vitality, Marriage and Family, Emotional Health
Tags: church planting, pastor, health, mental, physical, spiritual, vitality, top issues, planter's health, church-planting journey, coaching, burnout
Bryan Lorrits is the Lead Pastor of Fellowship Memphis Church, a multicultural church ministering to the urban Memphis community. Bryan has a Master’s Degree in Theology and is currently working on his PhD. In addition to serving the community of Memphis, Bryan’s ministry takes him across the country as he speaks to thousands annually at churches, conferences, and retreats. Bryan is married to Korie, and is the father of three sons: Quentin, Myles, and Jaden.
Bryan is speaking at the Chicago Boot Camp on Sept 15. You can listen to his session from the Nashville Boot Camp here.
Adapted from his blog:
I was recently asked what do I do to keep my relationship with my wife fresh? A list of things immediately came to mind — take her out of town, by her ...
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by Mark Driscoll
As church planters, Grace and I learned the hard way what a friendship is and is not. Somehow, I got the silly notion that everyone who picked me to be their friend was, in fact, my friend.
Subsequently, I ate lots of meals with people I did not enjoy, had people on my family vacations that drove me so nutty I could not wait to get back to work, and spent countless hours answering the phone, replying to emails, and responding to the demands of pushy, rude, selfish people who smiled while saying words like “buddy” and “friend.” What they meant by “friend” was something more akin to “bullied victim.”
The truth is, as a pastor, you and your wife have many kinds of relationships. What has been helpful for ...
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Posted in: Marriage and Family, Emotional Health, Relationship Building
Tags: friendship pastors, pastor friends, who gets to be friends with the pastor, how to be a friend to your pastor, how to pick your friends as a pastor, pastor pick friends, pastor choose friends, the pastor gets to choose friends, pastor choosing friends, how to choose friends, pastor, leadership, church planting, friends at church, driscoll kinds of friends, driscoll relationship lanes, enemies, old acquaintances, coworkers, teammates, distant relatives, neighbors, connections, close family, fellowship, spouse, 1-10 scale friendships, 1-10 scale relationships, driscoll frienship, driscoll pastor friends, driscoll pastor wife friends, friendshift, what is friendshift
Last month in Dallas during the boot camp, many wives attended the Wives' Track hosted by Acts 29 church planter's wives. We've been posting audio and transcription portions and continue the Planter Wives Answer series today on friendships.
Q&A panel, L-R: Stephanie White (Ft. Worth; wife of Rick), Susan Wesley (Houston; wife of Bruce), Lauren Chandler (Dallas; wife of Matt) and Kara Bruskas (Albuquerque; wife of Dave).
Q: How do you cultivate gospel friendships? What advice would you offer for women who have to do this long distance?
Kara: Since I am the relationship junkie of the group, I am definitely praying through doing it the right way. I see myself as having a few, rather than just one ...
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Posted in: Marriage and Family, Relationship Building, Planter Wives
Tags: church planter's marriage, church planter's wife, pastor's wife, lead pastor's wife, pastors wives, help for pastor's wives, advice for pastor's wife, advice for church planter's wife, practical help for a ministry wife, ministry wives, pastor marriage, pastor's wife, minister's wife, minister's family, elder's wife, susan wesley, lauren chandler, kara bruskas, stephanie white, dallas boot camp, church planter wife friendship, how to have friends as a pastor's wife, what can i share with my girlfriends? what should i share about my husband?
