Preparing Your Heart for Marriage

Even though I am going through a divorce, I thought this would be a great book to review as to "look in the past."

The devotional is broken up into sections that you can touch on subjects that are important to a marriage. Hey, maybe reading it can avoid a divorce like what I am going through. But does it really? That is something that I wanted to read to see if there was anything I could do better to recognise where I have failed and what could have been done better in my marriage to see beyond myself now and in further relationships-- romantic or not.

It is important to realise what you want from your marriage and I do feel that this is like that for me. It is like looking back and seeing what I need to "take note of" for the next go round.

I am less than enthusiastic about it being more religious in nature. But I think due to the nature of marriage those should be aligned in their belief or their openness to different beliefs.

This book does lose respect from me for claiming that marriage couldn't possibly come from humans and is the sole "God's invention" therefore only the Christian God can create the rules of marriage. I don't know why, but the egotistical writing of that alone would have me putting the book back down and walking away from the bookshelf quite mad. There is zero way to prove that and therefore is just a ludacris assumption and therefore makes the whole book less credible in my opinion. The funny part is that at the end of the chapter-- he asks such a BEAUTIFUL question about how someone views marriage-- is it designated by state or by your spiritual self?

However, as I keep reading on, there is a lot of very useful information in this book that can help a lot of marriages that are in trouble, not just existing happy marriages or even engaged couples.

I would have given this a 2 out of 5 based on the claim of who invented marriage alone, but given the fact that I kept reading on and there was more, so much more than that the book had to offer that I was pleasantly surprised with so I give it a 4. It is a versatile book that really can help people in any kinds of relationships.

Book Description:

"The wedding is planned, but are you spiritually prepared for your wedding day? Trusted relationship author Gary Thomas coaches engaged couples on how to grow closer to the Lord in the days leading up to the wedding as a means of preparing them for all the days after the wedding.

Engagement is bursting with promise, hope, joy, and anticipation of all kinds. It can also be one of the busiest times your life. For some, planning a wedding, with all the decisions involved, can feel less like the onset of marriage and more like a long to-do list. Amidst the busyness, this devotional is designed to help you think through the spiritual priorities and challenges that lie ahead in order to grow an outstanding marriage filled with love, grace, and God's blessing.

This lovely book provides encouraging entries that will help you deal with common issues such as:


What real intimacy means
How to celebrate your differences
Remembering to laugh together
With a special section on the marriage vows and meditations for the bride and groom, Preparing Your Heart for Marriage will help you grow in your relationship as a couple as you become closer to God. "