Journal
Notes from the work.
Written between weddings, by the person performing them. Practical where it can be, honest where that is more useful.
Pre-Marriage
How do you actually know you're ready to get married?
Readiness is not a feeling that arrives on schedule. It's a short list of things that are actually true about the two of you, and most engaged couples have never checked it.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Pre-Marriage
What the Bible actually says about marriage, in plain language
Not a sermon. A straightforward walk through what Scripture actually claims about marriage, written for anyone planning a wedding, whatever you believe.
August 23, 2026
3 min read
Pre-Marriage
Marrying someone who doesn't share your faith
One of you believes, one of you doesn't, or you land somewhere different. That's not automatically a problem. What matters is whether you've actually talked about it.
August 23, 2026
3 min read
Pre-Marriage
The money conversation you have to have before the wedding
Not a budget. A conversation about ownership, and most engaged couples still haven't had it.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Pre-Marriage
Setting boundaries with in-laws before you need them
The first real conflict with a parent-in-law usually happens in the first year. Deciding your answer now, together, is easier than deciding it in the moment.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Pre-Marriage
Should you live together before marriage? A fair look at both sides
Couples ask us this constantly, usually hoping for a simple yes or no. Here's the honest version, including what the research and the Bible each actually say, and where they genuinely disagree.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Pre-Marriage
What "leaving and cleaving" actually means before you build a life together
Two old words from Genesis that describe, more accurately than almost anything written since, what a wedding actually asks two people to do.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Marriage
What actually makes marriages last
Not chemistry, and not luck. The marriages that go the distance tend to share a small number of habits, and none of them are complicated.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Marriage
Conflict is not a sign your marriage is failing
Newly married couples often panic at their first real fight, as if it proves something went wrong. It usually proves the opposite.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Marriage
Forgiveness in marriage is a skill, not a feeling
Waiting to feel like forgiving someone is how resentment quietly takes over a marriage. Forgiveness is something you do before the feeling shows up.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Marriage
Keeping romance alive after the wedding is over
The version of romance that got you engaged runs on newness. The version that lasts has to be built on purpose.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Marriage
How to fight fair: the rules we walk through with every couple
A handful of specific rules, not vague advice to "communicate better," that change how an argument actually goes.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Marriage
Marriage as a covenant, not a contract
One word changes what happens when things get hard. A contract ends when someone stops performing. A covenant doesn't work that way.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Marriage
Protecting your marriage while you're raising small children
Nobody warns you how much a new baby reorganizes a marriage. Here's what actually helps, from couples who've been through it.
August 23, 2026
2 min read
Marriage
When marriage gets hard: how to recommit without pretending nothing happened
Almost every marriage has a season that's genuinely hard, not just busy. Getting through it well doesn't mean acting like it didn't happen.
August 23, 2026
3 min read
Marriage
Twelve questions to answer before you get married
Disagreeing on any of these is not a warning sign. Never having discussed them is. Twelve conversations worth having before the date.
August 11, 2026
8 min read
Ceremony
How long should a wedding ceremony be?
Twenty minutes for most weddings. The more useful answer is that length is not what makes a ceremony drag, and here is what does.
July 28, 2026
5 min read
Planning
How to get a marriage license in San Diego
No waiting period, no blood test, and one deadline that catches couples out. What the county needs from you, and what happens to the license after the ceremony.
July 14, 2026
6 min read
A ceremony worth remembering. A marriage worth the ceremony.
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