Marriage Matters

In the parable of the sower, Jesus discusses how the Word of God hits some people’s hearts. Some people bear fruit for God as a result. But others do not bear fruit because they exhibit “thorny soil”–soil that is choked out by the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desire for other things. (Mark 4:1-20)

The issue of bearing fruit doesn’t only apply to the individual lives of believers, but also to marriages. Some men and women love God but their marriages are never great because they never bear fruit. Why not? For the exact reasons Jesus gave.

In this Marriage Builder, I want to single out the first main fruit-killer which Jesus mentioned, because it is one that affects almost all of us.

This marriage killer is stress, or as Jesus describes it, “the cares of this world.” We were not created to operate in stress. We were created to operate in peace. Marriages require emotional energy and stress robs us of that energy.

Have you ever had a particularly stressful day or week? Afterward, it’s hard for you to relate to other people, because you are worn out emotionally.

Bonding doesn’t happen because of proximity. You can’t just sit on a couch together watching American Idol. You have to interact. You have to get emotionally involved, and this becomes very difficult when your emotions are already worn ragged due to stress.

Because men and women deal with emotions so differently, the emotional side of marriage is hard enough to begin with. Add stress to a relationship and it becomes much an even greater challenge.

But stress doesn’t just hurt relationships emotionally. It damages them physically, too. The number-one sexual problem among women is inhibited sexual desire because of stress and physical exhaustion.

Being stressed-out is a sex-killer for both husbands and wives. That’s why couples tend to have the best sex when husbands help with the kids, or the dishes, or the housework. This is a turn-on for the wife because, among other reasons, it reduces her stress.

Stress can also be a health-killer. The primary reason for doctors’ visits today in America is stress-related illness. Stress even rubs off on our children, who intuitively know when their parents are stressed. Sometimes kids will even develop physical problems because they observe their parents’ stress and internalize it.

God did not create us to live this way. We are not supposed to be like those plate-spinners at the circus, who put so many plates in motion that, eventually, some of them begin to drop and break. When that happens, you have broken children, broken bodies, broken emotions, and broken marriages.

The rule for not letting “the cares of this world” affect your marriage is this: less is more. Are you trying to do too much? Have you taken on too many responsibilities at work, or even church? Are you putting your income or success above your marriage? Those are questions we need to ask and answer.

The best lives, and best marriages, will always be the simple ones.

Photo courtesy of WTL Photos.

Read more from Jimmy Edwards at www.marriagetoday.org.

A little about John Berriman:

Born at an early age! (1954) On a farm in St.Ives, a town that I have been in all my life except 2 years Dairy farming in Canada.

Brought up going to the Anglican church where I met my DDG wife when I was 15! (Don’t ask!) We both became Christians in 1988 after out marriage hit the rocks, big time. Started a new church in St.Ives in 1999 & now about to embark on planting 3 more in the next 10 years starting in Launceston.I was ordained an Elim minister in 2006 at Butlins (wow) (for the Butlins!). I have a passion for Marriage and the lost as well as those already in the congregation to live by the TRUTH of The Bible. I am in the process of writing a book (pray for me) called ‘The TRUTH, the whole TRUTH and nothing but a pack of lies.’

As a way of trying to earn a little money I have invented some new soft drinks using chillies! These are about to be re-launched under the brand name of Rev.Berriman’s. Oh dear, keep praying.

J.B.

Why Men Don’t Apologise

Proud men don’t apologise. Why? Because you have to accept that you at fault and are taking responsibilty for that!

Embarrassed men dont apologise. Why? Because at best we dont want to admit or own our emotions and then talk about them. So when we feel bad or dumb or inadequate we go into our caves and hide rather than face reality head on.

Angry men dont apologise. Why? Because our anger deflects onto the other person we think has wronged us, we justify our actions and thus prevents us from seeing our part in the mess.

The soultion? Be humble! Men love posturing and this means we put up facades that present an overinflated false picture of who we really are. We act as if we’re not always right but we’re never wrong! We present a persona that says we are handling and coping with everything life throws at us. But under our Superman suit we are all just Clark Kent – human and as such we do make mistakes. Accepting your humanity is not wrong; it’s what you are. To act like you’re divine will alienate you from everyone but to accept this will mature you as a man.

Must I Apologise?

Yes, including when you are not totally to blame. Dont be the kind of guy that refuses to acknowledge your part in the offence and only aplogise when it’s 100% your fault. Remember it takes two to cause an offence and it’s rare that an offence is 100% one person’s fault.

Find and acknowledge your part in the offence and seek to understand yourself – why you did what you did. Understanding is the dorrway to growth and maturity. Justifying yourself is destructive and short-sighted which will negate any personal potential growth. While you justify yourself you may be destroying what is most precious to you. Some men choose to be right but it comes at a very high expense.

Normally owning up to your part in the relational breakdown will help the others involved to accept their part but even if they dont it doesn’t matter. At least you not held captive to their unwillingness to apologise.

Boys in big bodies dont apologise. Children hide under the bed or run away. Nothing changes. Big boys still hide or run away. A mantakes ownership of his faults whether there are unpleasant consequences or not.

Apologise as soon as possible because the longer you wait the more justified you will be become and the more hurt and resentful the other will be. Ignring an offence means sweeping it under the carpet but eventually everyone including you is going to trip and fall over that offence mountain under the carpet! The sooner you apologise the sooner the awkwardness can be dealt with and everyone can move on. A bit of humour also helps in the right context. Stop taking yourself so seriously and have a good laugh at yourself!

Don’t Apologise when standing up for your faith in Jesus Christ and the Christian values, standards and principles you uphold… as long as you dont defend yourself by acting like a moron! And if you do act like a moron then you’ve already lost your case and you should sincerely apologise. You have a right to your faith and even if people dont agree with it they should respect that.

Don’t apologise for not being perfect. Unreasonable people and unreasonable expectations should be called as such. If the expectation is unreasonable then say so and don’t apologise for it no matter how the other party tries to justify the reasoning behind their demands.

Dont apologise for every little thing. Being overly sensitive is a sign of certain insecurity and low self-esteem. No-one respects a compulsive apologiser and far from being manly it’s really emasculating.

9 steps for saying sorry like a man:

1. If you cant look them in the face then put it in writing.
2. Admit to others what they already know about you but just aren’t saying. It helps everyone.
3. Laugh at yourself. It helps others laugh with you.
4. Really apologise otherwise it’s not an apology at all. Do  not say I’m sorry but… That is not an apology. You have the right to explain but not the right to excuse yourself. Do not express sorrow for them being sorry. You are not admitting any fault and merely pouring petrol on the fire instead of water.
5. Explain why you are sorry because it expresses your understanding of the gravity of the situation, that you have thought about what you have done and what it means to you and others you have hurt. This tells the other party that you’re not just apologising because you have to.
6. When you apologise do whatever it takes to make right. If you don’t offer to make right then the apology is not an apology because it means that you are not taking responsibility for your actions.
7. Regret that you did what you did and communicate your wish to grow and do better in the future; that you have learnt from your behaviour. Where necessary get professional help.
8. Actions speak louder than words. If your words are not followed up with corresponding actions then it meant nothing at all. A man is a man of his word.
9. Fail forward! Go on living and do not live in regret. Being anchored in the past is for neutralised men. Life is for living.

As promised, here is the video that had us all in laughter at He Saved The Day. Watch it here!

Hi all,

I just want to use the opportunity to thank God once again for being at the Men’s Conference.

I already sent an email earlier expressing my thanks to God and those people God used.

However, I just thought I should share this with you all.

Last night while I was back in the house I lodged and meditating on the things we were thought at the conference and praying during the course of the meditation, God showed me what I needed to do to reach out to my colleagues at work.
I will be pursuing that this week and it crossed my heart yesterday that God will reach out to all my colleagues through this means.

Also, I received last night confirmation about where God wants me to worship before relocating to Africa. This has been an issue for the last couple of months.

Lastly, while I was preparing for the conference on Friday, I was ironing my clothes and my iron stopped working.
I quickly checked if I could find the receipt/bank statement to show that I bought it at Asda but I couldnt.

I cycled to Asda but was told that I needed to get the receipt or a Bank Statement showing exactly the cost of the iron.

I couldnt find it so I left for the conference.
On saturday, during the break, i went to M&S in Exeter to see if I could get a new iron.
I already picked up the iron but thought to myself that I should get back home and check again if I could find the cost of the iron in my bank statement.

I got back home and checked but I couldnt find it..
I picked up the iron, to be sincere, i just picked it up, without thinking I touched the iron and thought that I should switch it on.
I did and it worked..

I am grateful to God for the fact that the iron worked.
although the iron cost £15 but I am too grateful to God and sensed I should share this with you all.
The same God that saved me from wasting another £15 is all powerful to save me from wasting millions and could use me to save lives from dying, businesses from failing and institutions and societies from wasting efforts on replacing things that still have long life.

Thank you God and thank you guys.

Love you all

Abraham

Browse the photos on Flickr in hi-res.

See all the photos from Day 1 of He Saved The Day on our Photo Album.

“Timing is the essential ingredient in success: Being the right man, at the right time, in the right place.”

“To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society.”

“To read the Word and apply it to someone else is the letter of the law, and it will kill you.”

“To the degree that you become a good son to God, you become a good father to your children.”

“Too often men look only at images but are blind to issues.”

“True nobility is found in the dignity of real manhood.”

“Unbelief is the basis of sin. Pride is the strength of sin. Deceitfulness is the character of sin.”

“We can be one of God’s few successes or one of His thousands of disappointments.”

“What a man is in his manhood determines what he is in every other aspect of his life and relationships.”

“What God expects from a man is manhood.”

“What you believe is the basis for conduct, character and destiny.”

“When a man acts like a child, it forces his wife to act like his mother.”

“When we accept another man’s philosophy, which is a rationalization to justify his failure, we accept his failure.”

“Women want the same things in men that God wants: consistency, decisiveness and strength.”

“You become intimate with the one for whom you pray, with whom you pray and to Whom you pray.”

“You can be a professing Christian on Sunday but a practicing atheist during the week.”

“You can tell the character of a man by the friends he keeps.”

“You’re not qualified to lead if you cannot be led.”

“God commands us to commit to faithful men, then He makes them able.”