January 17th, 2018 transformed our lives. It was the day I (Patrick) heard the word cancer. “Would you spell that for me?” I asked the nurse over the phone. My head was already spinning. Heart pounding. I scribbled a word that I had, until now, never heard before onto the only scrap piece of paper…
When You Feel Like Giving Up
I felt like giving up when I heard the news of my husband’s cancer diagnosis almost three years ago. How would we go on? I didn’t want to walk through this. It was too much. And suffering never comes at the right time, does it? It’s true that hearing the “C” word is like being…
One Choice Every Couple Should Make in Their Suffering
What is one choice every couple should make in the midst of their storm? It might sound like a simple question, but it is incredibly important. One of the most important choices we can make as a couple is to move toward community instead of away from it. The challenge for most of us is…
Love Is Stronger
But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. — Matthew 5:44 Do you know someone who is hard to love? Maybe it’s someone who has a different personality or a friend who did something or said something that was hurtful to you. How do you treat this person? Sometimes…
How to Teach Gratitude to Our Children
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. — 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 We were sitting with a couple, who are dear friends, around a table, nestled in the back corner of a restaurant. Behind us was a wall of windows, giving us the perfect…
The Missing Vow
There is a missing vow — and it’s a big one! It is the vow to love your spouse with kids in the house. The missing vow has to do with our commitment to love each other when we transition from marriage as a couple to marriage with children. Without this vow, we lack the…