Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Frustrating Fault of Mine

I Feel Like My Hands Are Tied

Something you ought to know about me - I don't have a great filter when I'm talking to people. I have a habit of just blurting out whatever comes to my mind. 

Think before you speak. I remember my parents repeating those words quite a few times in my childhood.

It's not that I purposefully try to make situations awkward, or that I have the intention of hurting my beautiful wife. It's just that my care-free impulsiveness takes the reins more often than not. Some of that impulsiveness probably contributed to my promiscuity and infidelity, in addition to all of the "Shapes from the Past" that hadn't been dealt with.

Scripture comes to mind, "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak..." (James 1:19 NIV). 

What does that have to do with this blog?

Well, there are several things I want to just blurt out on these virtual pages. 

Thinking before I speak quickly translates to thinking before I type something as well. Sometimes I'll get inspired to talk about something that happened in our marriage that I want to share with all of you. I'll type it out & publish it, only to find out that my wife wasn't 100% comfortable with the information. She acknowledges that we will reveal our names, photos, and other personal details to help connect with our readers eventually. However, for now, she's not ready. I'm not going to push her. I will remain patient. 

My intention with sharing details? I want you to see a real person. I want you to be able to connect to something concrete; real life, real struggles, genuine hope, honest-to-goodness verifiable heart transformation, a beautifully restored marriage, the truth of Jesus lived out in someone's home. 

I don't know how easy that is for you. My wife and I don't have pictures of us on this blog. We don't publish our names. I have only hinted at the large metropolitan area we live near. It's still a bit vague. But when I talk about specific health issues, or how many kids we have, or that she's pregnant right now, it narrows possibilities down a bit. That makes her uncomfortable.

My goal is not to make my wife uncomfortable. Remember my post, "Rebuilding Trust?" If I truly want my wife to feel safe, I have to consider all aspects of the trust she wants to have for me again. That includes topics and details that I put here on this blog.

Good Generic Information

So, for now, I will do my best to continue publishing relevant information while not compromising my wife's trust. Wouldn't that be a kind of double-standard: My desire to help inspire others and to send a message of hope at the expense of my wife? I can't do that. 

More Detailed Information

What has helped you so far? What is it about this blog or our story that you've connected with? What stage are you at in your relationship? Have you recently discovered your spouse has cheated? Are you only suspicious right now? Was it years ago? Are you on the brink of divorce? Have you kept it a secret? Are you working on restoration? Drop us a line. We'd love to connect with you & to pray for your marriage.


Saturday, June 11, 2016

A Weekend to Remember

I Encourage You to Attend!

Check out these great resources!!
My wife and I are at the Family Life Weekend to Remember in Irvine. I had to share some of these resources with you.

This first one has several options: A Oneness Prayer Challenge by texting ONENESS to 33733, Something to FOOLPROOF YOUR ANNIVERSARY by texting CELEBRATE to 33733, and other resources by texting FAMILYLIFE to 33733.

The speaker said at the close of the first session, "Some of you came here with divorce papers in hand. I only ask one thing of you...please come back for tomorrow's session." Two years ago, I had divorce papers in hand. No, we didn't attend a marriage conference, but we did make a complete turnaround by the grace of God. I want to encourage you to click on the Weekend to Remember link above and sign up for a conference. They have conferences scheduled all over the U.S. I am not affiliated in any way with Family Life. I have absolutely zero incentive to share their events or endorsed books with you. I am simply sharing these things with you because my wife and I love you. We are praying for you. We are praying for the restoration of your marriage. It is possible! But you need as much support as possible. 

  

As we walked through the resource area, I came across these books. They aren't clickable links. They're only pictures of the front covers (sorry, I'm not super tech savvy). I know that some of you are on the verge of divorce. Please take a look at Before the Last Resort before you sign the dotted line.

Also, nearly every time I've been contacted by a wife who has a cheating husband, I recommend the book, Every Heart Restored. Now I'd also add to the list, Torn Asunder and Choosing Forgiveness.



I want to thank all of you who have been praying for my wife as she endures cirrhosis and this unexpected pregnancy at the same time. Thankfully we've now entered into the Second Trimester! Yay!! Please continue to pray for my wife's healing, as well as the healthy development of our sixth child. Once we find out if it's a boy or girl, I'll share that info here.

Blessings to all of you!