A great, biblically sound premarital counseling guide
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| Review Date: July 27, 2001 |
| Reviewer: Marc Axelrod, Potter, Wi USA |
| As a pastor, I do my fair share of premarital counseling. And what I look for in a premarital primer is something that asks good, penetrating questions, is steeped in scripture, and challenges the bridal couple to implement the lessons in their marital life. This workbook does all that. I should say that since I'm not really into psychology, I tend to skim over chapters 4-6 rather quickly and move right onto chapter 7. But everything else in the book (the chapters on understanding marriage, childhood backgrounds, the concept of biblical love, communication, conflict, inlaws, roles, finances, sex, and spirituality) is outstanding. Buy this book if you are planning on getting married or if you are planning on doing any premarital counseling. |
A real nuts and bolts Christian marriage manual
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| Review Date: May 25, 2000 |
| Reviewer: Joe Eckstine, |
| Before you say I Do is a wonderful tool in assessing whether or not the person you are dating is truly "the one". The chapters deal with a number of different aspects concerning compatibility between people. My favorite chapter deals with the "what ifs" of life and provokes couples to compare how they would handle lifes difficulties. I have used this tool with a number of different couples in premarital counseling resulting in some wonderful revelations about where the couples were and where they were going. Use this manual if you really want to discover where you and your prospective mate stand on the important issues of life. |
Great Help in Communication Lots of Fun
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| Review Date: November 18, 2003 |
| Reviewer: , |
| We purchased two copies of this book. We live 100 miles apart right now and are working on one chapter at a time together. We meet on weekends and discuss the chapter and questions. (We actually finished just before New Year's Eve.) Many of the items had already come up in our discussion, but this has opened up other areas such as goal setting. If your spouse to be doesn't have the energy to plan and prepare now, what does that say about how she or he will treat the rest of life. We have the benefit of both being over 40. If you you are a young person, please take seriously the need to plan. The passion doesn't have to leave, I agree, but you have to plan and do the work to support the long term growth of that passion. A book like this will help. If you are not a person of faith this book will be of little value to you. If your fiance is not a person of faith this book could be pretty difficult. If you think YOU can SAVE your finance, then you both need to read something other than this. That is a whole different issue. After getting through the entire book - I can say that some of the questions are a bit repetitive - but all and all it is something I strongly reccomend for Christians considering marriage. |
Great resource for engaged couples
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| Review Date: June 12, 2001 |
| Reviewer: , |
| When I was engaged, this book was given to me by a friend who was also currently engaged. She had really enjoyed working through the exercises with her fiance (now husband) and so she passed it on to me. Me and my fiance (now husband, also) really enjoyed this book as well. The questions it asks are thought and conversation provoking, which is exactly what engaged couples need! Be forewarned though, that this book is REALLY religiously minded (references many Bible passages) but don't let that turn you off if you're not a religious person. My husband & I are not AT ALL religious, but we got JUST as much out of the book (we simply skipped the pieces that didn't apply to us). I recommend this book to anyone planning on getting married -- in fact, I just sent a copy to a friend of mine who just got engaged. |
Happily married for 13 years after using this book!
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| Review Date: May 16, 2002 |
| Reviewer: M. Clark, Pennsylvania, USA |
| My husband and I worked through this book in 1987 and were married the following year. I can honestly say that this book helped us avoid some HUGE fights and problems, since it led us through discussions we might never have thought to have otherwise. Among other things, it forced us to discuss and evaluate our expectations, it taught us to be realistic in planning our finances and household duties, and it let us answer some TOUGH questions (children, sex, holidays) that were much easier to discuss PRIOR to marriage. I have given this book as an engagement gift a hundred times since! My happy, peaceful marriage is proof that it works. |
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