Challenge Literature Fellowship - AustraliaBy Alan Bailey
Getting married is still fairly popular but not as popular as simply living together. We have husbands, wives and partners. And who should question it? After all, what people do in relationship is their business.
Well now, if the de facto position is defensible, why should it all be a taboo subject? Let’s take a quick look at two sides of the question.
By Rob Furlong
Author Tim La Haye once wrote:
“As long as two people can keep the lines of communication open and freely express their feelings, differences can be resolved.”
We have been exploring anger this year and the negative effect it has on relationships when expressed poorly or inappropriately; this month I want to talk about the way in which negative anger kills communication between people and what we can do about it.
There are three, basic communication killers.
By Rob Furlong
Every successful sprinter will tell you that the key to winning is keeping your focus on the finish line. Never look to see where your opponent is and most certainly, never look back!
In his wonderful book, A Resilient Life, Gordon MacDonald writes “…there are some (people) who stand out from all the rest…the further they run, the stronger they get…”
He calls such people “resilient ones” and describes the qualities he has observed in them; qualities that are the reasons behind the strong impression they leave on people.
The same thought can be applied to marriages. Why is it that some marriages make it through the toughest of times – even emerging from them stronger – when other marriages fall apart?
It comes back to one word: resilience.
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By Rob Furlong
Have you ever wondered how different our world might be if Jesus had never been born?
For example, as a direct result of His emphasis on love, mercy and compassion, Christians set up organizations such as hospitals, universities, a just and fair judicial system, orphanages and centres caring for the poor.
All because a baby was born in a stable two thousand years ago.
One of the most profound impacts Jesus has had upon our world is in the area of our relationships, especially those between husbands, wives and the family unit.
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by Rob Furlong
The sign hanging from the balcony of the second floor apartment said it all. It simply read, “For sale – one husband!”
After a number of weeks of government enforced isolation, clearly things – or her husband – were getting to one poor lady!
With most of the world in some form of lockdown it would be unusual for even the best of relationships to not experience some form of tension at the moment!
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By Rob Furlong
Being asked to officiate at a couple’s wedding has been one of the greatest privileges of my life and I especially love being a part of the special, sacred moment when a man and a woman make their vows to each other.
The dictionary defines a vow as a “solemn promise … especially in the form of an oath to God …”
It’s a good reminder.
You see, when a couple commits to loving and staying with each other for life, they have not just made their promises before their family and friends.
They have also done so in the presence of God Himself – and I believe that He holds them accountable for the words they have spoken.
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Tips for Life
by Alan Bailey
As I stood admiring a lovely home the other day I was told that the previous owners, in their seventies, had split up and were going their separate ways. How often do we hear of it? Couples who have lived together for most of their lives, having brought up a family and been through thick and thin together, deciding that they can’t stand each other any more.
Not only is the change of heart hard to understand but the aftermath of the break-up must be so painful as to threaten any future happiness. Property splitting, new family relationships and other changes would hardly be all sweetness and light.
Recently The West Australian published an article opining that now that people in de facto relationships can claim superannuation benefits from their partner’s fund, that the institution of marriage has been rendered redundant.Continue reading
Do you sometimes wish you could be in charge of the universe and make all the rules? I think many of us believe we know best how others should live and wish we could tell them!
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