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weekend seminars

There are four teaching sessions - each approximately an hour in length.  There is an intertwining of humor, scripture and relationship principles in each of the sessions.  Video clips, props and a Power Point presentation are used.

 

The goal is to give the participants new ways to evaluate their relationships, tools they can use immediately, and to set a framework for further relational growth and development.

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Packets are provided for each attendee.  Included in the packets are:

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  • Notes and fill-in blanks for each session

  • Circles of Life sheets

  • My Day sheet

  • Short paper titled Marriage - God's Design by Gary Moore

  • Recommended reading list

  • Emotional Needs Questionnaire by Willard F. Harley, Jr.

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The format is flexible and can be tailored to the group's needs.

typical format

  • Dinner on Friday night followed by the first session

  • First session on Saturday begins at 9AM

  • The final session is normally concluded by 12:30PM at the latest on Saturday

  • Lunch provided before departing

  • There is a 5 - 10 minute break between each of the Saturday sessions

overview of the sessions

Session #1 - MUM's the Word

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  • Overview of the Mutual Understanding Method and how it came to be

  • Circles of Life - Relationships and Emotional Energy

  • Differences in how men and women view relationships

  • Covenant Marriages vs Consumer Contracts

  • Hopes, Dreams and Desires vs. Expectations

  • Expectations and Debt/Debtor Relationships

  • What to do with our hopes, dreams and desires

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Session #2 - Sub Who?​

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  • Counter-cultural message of Jesus with an emphasis on John 13

  • Cultural setting of Paul's application of Jesus' teaching as recorded in Ephesians 5 - an overview of the different ways the Greeks, Romans and Jews viewed marriage relationships

  • Ephesians 5:22 in the oldest Greek manuscripts

  • Mutual submission - how Christian marriages are truly designed to be submission competitions

  • The most controversial part of Paul's teaching in Ephesians 5

  • Effect of expectations on your ability to submit or love

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Session #3 - Six Divorce Predictors

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  • Overview of Drs. John and Julie Gottman's work and the Gottman Institute

  • My experience in training at the Gottman Institute

  • A discussion of what Drs. John and Julie Gottman call the six divorce predictors and their antidotes as listed in their book The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work (this book as sold over 1,000,000 copies world-wide)

  • Discussion of the communication rule - until the emotions of the situation are dealt with, the facts don't matter

  • Discussion of emotional triggers and what to do with them

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Session #4 - The Choice

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  • What do we do when what we expect doesn't match what we experience?

  • A look at 1 Corinthians 13 and the choice that all happy couples make

  • A look at the recommendation from the 20 year study of happy couples in the US, Canada and Europe as reported in Marcus Buckingham's book, The One Thing You Need to Know

  • Obstacles to making the right choice and how to resolve them

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