Is marriage really the church's business?

There's no doubt marriage is messy and comes with plenty of baggage. But is a couple's marriage really anyone's business but their own? Of course. Marriage doesn't affect just a husband and wife. It affects their kids, their community, even the health of the church your church. When marriages are strong, attendance, tithing, volunteerism, even the quality of worship tends to go up. When marriages are weak, the opposite usually happens.

In Married People: How Your Church Can Build Marriages that Last, Ted Lowe and Doug Fields show how the church is uniquely positioned, despite being overcommitted in time and resources, to be in the business of building marriages. For every ministry leader pastor, age group minister, family minister, even the dedicated volunteer this book offers a vision and a step-by-step strategy for empowering marriages and strengthening the church in the process.

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Years ago, my wife and I had the great benefit of learning about how wonderful a marriage can be from Ted Lowe and the amazing events he produced. That he's partnered with Doug Fields and created a book to help other marriages is absolutely awesome!
Jon Acuff, New York Times bestselling author of Start and Stuff Christians Like

If you think marriage ministry is outdated, boring, preachy or feminine, then please read Married People. Ted Lowe and Doug Fields do a masterful job of crafting a relevant, fun and engaging marriage ministry strategy for the local church. I know of no other book like it. My hope is that churches will implement their approach and everyone will be FOR marriage.
Ted Cunningham, founding pastor, Woodland Hills Family Church, Branson, Missouri, and author of Fun Loving You and Trophy Child

Every church is filled with couples struggling in their marriage. We want to help couples have an amazing marriage, but most of our time, resources, and energy are given as a reaction to marital crisis. What I love about Married People is the holistic vision it provides every church and pastor to gain influence with married people and create irresistible environments for them to grow in their love for God and each other. We can't change a human heart, but we can provide the space and opportunities for God to transform married couples. This is a must-have resource for all churches.
Justin Davis, pastor, Cross Point Church, Nashville, Tennessee, and co-author of Beyond Ordinary: When a Good Marriage Just Isn't Good Enough

As culture shifts and marriages continue to struggle, the church at large is desperate to find its voice in engaging, equipping and empowering today's marriages. Married People: How Your Church Can Build Marriages that Last gives words to start conversations and reignite passion within the church to be a voice for this generation and generations to come.
Trisha Davis, co-author of Beyond Ordinary: When a Good Marriage Just Isn't Good Enough and co-founder, RefineUs Ministries

While devout Christians revere the Bible, many tend to regard it as an allegorical text written thousands of years ago and ignore its relevance to modern life.

In Meeting Girls like Us, Book 2: Old Testament Women, Barby Bailey takes the opposite approach. She analyzes the stories of six biblical heroines and uses them as inspirational examples of how modern women can cope with the many challenges around them. Not only does she bring these women to life, but she also regards them as sisters who have confronted and conquered similar problems.

She tells us about Naomi, who battled famine, homelessness, death, and poverty. There's Hannah, who used to power of prayer to cope with her infertility. Abigail deals with a wealthy but ill-tempered husband, Bathsheba struggles for forgiveness, Ezekiel's wife was carted off to a foreign land against her will, and Gomer contended with temptation and infidelity. Bailey personalizes each of these stories, annotating them with scriptural references and amplifying their meaning by relating them to her own life.

In relating these six stories, Bailey not only makes us feel that we know these women: she allows us to understand ourselves better.

The debate about men and women in the church and in marriage continues to cause division among Christians. Most books on this issue are written from a firmly partisan point of view - complementarian or egalitarian. This one is unique.

Andrew Bartlett draws on his theological learning and his skills as a judge and arbitrator to offer an even-handed assessment of the debate. His analysis is thorough but accessible. He engages with advocates of each view and all the key biblical texts, weighing the available evidence and offering fresh insights. He invites the reader to move beyond complementarian and egalitarian labels and seeks progress towards healing the division.