From This Day Forward, by Craig and Amy Groeschel

As founder of Lifechurch.tv, Craig Groeschel has proven himself as an innovative church leader and skilled communicator.  As a couple married for 23 years and the parents of 6 children, Craig and his wife Amy have learned a few things about marriage.  In From This Day Forward: Five Commitments to Fail-Proof Your Marriage, the Groeschels deliver, as the subtitle promises, five simple things to remember, five keys to a successful marriage.

Spoiler alert!  Here they are:
1. Seek God.
2. Fight fair.
3. Have fun.
4. Stay pure.
5. Never give up.

Simple? Yes.  Easy?  Not always.  The Groeschels make plain the sad truth that half or more of marriages fail, and that even some couples that don't divorce are miserable with each other.  The challenge is not to "just keep doing the same things that everyone else is doing."  The odds are against marriage.  The objective is to do what it takes to increase the odds of a healthy marriage.

Seeking God together is the starting point.  "If you put God first together, he will absolutely grant you the kind of marriage he wants you to have.  He delights in doing it."  As the saying goes, couples that pray together stay together.  Groeschel cites a Family Life survey that found that among Christian couples, only eight percent pray together regularly, but of that group, fewer than one percent divorce.  So praying together increases the odds greatly!

I also liked Groeschel's emphasis on having fun together.  As time goes by and kids are around, it becomes more difficult to spend time having fun together.  Couples have to set aside time for face-to-face, side-to-side, and, of course belly button to belly button time.  ("One of the greatest things you can do for each other is to engage in frequent, creative, spiritual lovemaking."  Amen to that!)  With six kids around the Groeschels surely have some experience with carving out time together.

From This Day Forward is primarily written by Craig, and tends to have a male-oriented perspective, but at the end of each chapter Amy adds her feminine touch.  They don't necessarily break new ground here, but the Groeschels provide encouragement for married couples no matter where they are.  They are very sensitive to address single readers, as well as to offer lots of grace and forgiveness for couples who have made a mess of things.  Take some encouragement from the Groeschels.  Whatever has gone before, good or bad, take time to make these five commitments from this day forward.  Your marriage is worth it.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!