Blog

It’s almost here! I’m excited about this year’s conference. It’s going to be great to just spend some time with my wife and focus on strengthening our marriage. A marriage conference is kind of like an oil change. Get one every 3000 miles and the car tends to run a lot better. Forget to change the oil and it’s just going to be a matter of time before there’s major engine damage. Of course, RBC marriage conference’s are a whole lot more fun than oil changes! To that end we want to get you started thinking about Friday’s dinner date and the overnight conference.

Remember that the plan is for you and your spouse to go out to dinner on Friday and arrive back in the RBC Sanctuary by 8pm. You’ll really want to get back to RBC around 7:45pm so that you can check in at the registration table and find your seat in the sanctuary. We want to mix the tables up with couples of different number of years married. So when you walk in the sanctuary you’ll see colored circles on each table in front of the chairs. Just find a colored circle that fits the number of years you’ve been married and have a seat. It’s really easy.

We have some discussion topics for your dinner date. The discussion is meant to open the lines of communication with your spouse and to help frame the conference for you as a whole. Take some time to think about your responses to the discussion items, particularly #1 and #3. Make sure your spouse has a chance to see them in advance of Friday as well. That way the two of you can make the most of your time together over dinner discussing your thoughts. Here are the discussion items:

1) Describe to your spouse how you feel about each of the below aspects of your marriage. Include your thoughts on things that are going well and why, and things that could be improved. Be honest and transparent. For things that could be improved, share how you feel without being judgmental (e.g. “I feel like…” instead of “You don’t do…) — Physical intimacy, including sex — Emotional, friendship bond between you two — Spiritual side of your relationship with your spouse

2) After hearing each other’s views, which area of your marriage do you feel there is the greatest difference of opinion between you and your spouse?

3) What do you hope happens as a result of this marriage conference?

One more thing. For the Ice Breaker time at your table, be prepared to tell one of your favorite local places to go, say within an hour’s drive, that others might not know about. It could be a restaurant, a park, a local activity, anything that might not be as well known. Each table will have a piece of paper to write these places down. We’ll collect them and e-mail them all out to everyone who attends after the conference.

That’s it! Get ready for a great time with your beloved! We have over 80 couples attending making this one of the largest marriage conferences at RBC yet.

See you there,

John & Jana Smith
Marriage Conference Coordinator

It’s been a busy Spring so far hasn’t it? With so much to do, it’s easy to lose focus on the things that are really important. One of the biggest takeaways couples said they had from the last marriage booster was how important it was to make their marriage a priority in their life. That sounds so obvious but isn’t it the truth that in our busyness, we often take our spouse and our marriage for granted. My wife Jana and I have been married for almost 28 years, and I know I’ve been guilty of that several times.

On May 6-7, 2011, RBC is hosting our fifth annual Marriage Conference. This is going to be a great opportunity for you to take a break for the busyness and invest in your spouse and your marriage. It’s a time to really focus on improving your marriage and move closer to each other in “oneness.” In fact, that’s the theme of this year’s conference – “One in Body, Soul, and Spirit.”

On Friday night, Mike Minter is going to talk about the physical intimacy aspect of marriage. Saturday morning, Paul Goodnight will talk about the emotional/friendship aspects of marriage. Then Tony Pedroni will talk about the spiritual aspects of being a husband and wife. Then, based on your feedback, finish with an interactive Q&A session with Mike, Paul, and Tony. You’ll be able to text in your questions anonymously during the conference or ask away during the Q&A.

If you’ve been to a marriage booster or conference in the past, you know how great they are and how much fun they can be. Jana and I go to these every time they’re offered. Sign up online at www.restonbible.org/marriage.

As a veteran of many marriage conferences, I really encourage you to take advantage of the special arrangements at the DOUBLETREE by Hilton Hotel to make it a real overnight get-away. The hotel has extended the registration for guaranteed rate/rooms to Friday, April 29th.

See you there,

John Smith
Marriage Conference Coordinator