What we call each other and how we address each other impacts the sense of trust and safety in our relationship. Let’s make the names we use for each other a blessing.

Some time ago, we were chatting with a man in his late twenties. He had been living with his girlfriend for some years, and she was restless: she wanted a commitment to marriage and family. After seven years together, he was still uncertain.

Towards the end of July, we celebrate World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. This year (2024), the theme is loneliness and references Psalm 71:9 — “Do not cast me off in my old age”.  

In 2019, Paak released "Make It Better", featuring Smokey Robinson — a sweet, phat track that contains much wisdom for us married men.

Disagreements and tension with our children’s mother can’t help but spill over into how we relate to our kids. Our words and actions (or our inaction) can have powerful consequences for our families and children.

Behind every behaviour or decision that you make, is a value; something that you hold in high esteem and is advanced in some way by the action. Deliberately choosing to make what is important to one, important to both, is the way you can intentionally develop your coupleness.

Pride is profoundly I-centred. It defends our threatened ego by diminishing the other and consequently puts distance between us. Humility is the foundation of harmony and love between husband and wife. It helps us get the focus off winning and onto each other.

In one simple sentence, Dr Johnson nailed the foundation of couple arguments: “Arguments are a protest against disconnection.” It revolutionised our interactions.

It’s the second law of thermodynamics and we use the term regularly in ordinary conversation. But what does entropy have to do with relationships? 

Renewing our vows can be done as frequently as we choose; from the mundane routines to settings in the extreme. When we start to think this way, there must be thousands of opportunities for couples to renew their vows.

An intentional marriage that is loving and affirming, is a powerful way to heal the wounds of insecure attachment. It’s one of the great graces of marriage as we grow in attachment to each other by providing consistent and responsive care.

The phenomenon of eloping to avoid the drama and cost of a big event is not a new idea. What is new, is having the big event, but exchanging vows separately in a smaller, more intimate, ceremony.

Vows are not just words. Unlike a promise, which is typically made between people and may be private to them, a sacred vow is made to God, or before God as a witness. It is never totally private and carries accountability to the person (or people) to whom we made the vow and to God.

One of the best things a dad can do for his kids is to love and respect their mother. A strong marriage creates security for the whole family, and it helps your kids thrive in significant ways.

Who are your marriage role models? The number of couples choosing to get married is plummeting. Good, solid marriages are less common than they used to be. Maybe YOUR marriage has been a role model for others – or maybe you would like to be.

I finally discovered my wife’s biggest turn-on. I must confess I’d never been a fan of Gary Chapman’s book "The 5 Love Languages" before this incident. Initially, the whole concept felt contrived. I wasn’t buying it. That is, until that moment in the kitchen...

My father returned from the war with ten quid in his pocket. He’d been flying Spitfires and Hurricanes over Europe and later in Burma. He was invalided out, worn out by what he’d seen and done.

A new book, “The Two-Parent Privilege: How Americans Stopped Getting Married and Started Falling Behind”, shows just how starkly a child’s success in life can be affected based on whether he grows up with married parents or a single parent.

It’s commonly accepted today that first marriages have a greater success rate when delayed. If we dig a bit deeper, however, we find this conventional wisdom regarding delayed marrying has its flaws. Certain factors are at play in the success of all marriages.

Masculine men are the very thing we need — now more than ever in the battle of traditionalism versus progressivism. Though the media has attacked the vital value of gender itself, we know they’re wrong. We know male and female is how we’re made.