by Susanne M. Alexander | May 27, 2015 | Character, Communication, Family, Marriage
It’s relentless. For the last few months, I’ve been traveling and responding to the needs of critically ill relatives. When I’ve been home, the piles of needs insisting on being met grow like a well-fertilized garden. Each day has calls and emails with more problems...
by Susanne M. Alexander | May 16, 2015 | Character, Communication, Dating, Family, Marriage Preparation, Uncategorized
When I travel, I occasionally pick up a light-reading romance novel that I can leave behind in airplanes or hotels. After reading one, I notice I am feeling resistant to the popular notion of “instant relationships”. It is the norm in these books for the couple to be...
by Susanne M. Alexander | Mar 27, 2015 | Communication, Dating, Marriage, Spirituality
Individuals have their own experience of prayer, that personal conversation we each have with God. This means that learning how, when, and why to pray together in powerful partner prayer as a couple formed of two individuals can often be challenging. A place to begin...
by Susanne M. Alexander | Mar 25, 2015 | Communication, Marriage, Spirituality
“All couples fight.” “Learn to fight fair.” “Manage your conflict.” In a world where violent words and actions are common, we can automatically assume that various levels of conflict are normal and expected in relationships and marriages. A low-conflict marriage may...
by Susanne M. Alexander | Feb 23, 2015 | Communication, Love and Intimacy, Marriage, Spirituality
Sacrifice is an essential element of a strong marriage. We give up the lesser important for the most important. I have been grappling with sacrifice for the last few weeks. In consultation and prayer we decided that my husband needed to work towards being...
by Susanne M. Alexander | Dec 19, 2014 | Communication, Family, Marriage
Money is often a challenge for couples to talk about. Every aspect of money decisions has links to emotions and personal history. It is easy for fear, envy, anger, and more to be triggered. This first year of marriage has had many financial complexities as Phil and I...
