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| In This Issue • Marriage Skill 23: Involve Yourself with Others • Two-Day Marriage Clinic™ • Other Upcoming Opportunities |
| Marriage Skill 23:
To Remove Aloneness, Involve Yourself in Your Marriage Relationship, Family Relationships, and Church Relationships God has established three institutions that “remove aloneness:” marriage, family and the Church. God established marriage to meet needs and remove aloneness. Gen. 2:18 “Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.’” God established the family to meet needs and remove aloneness. Gen. 4:1 “Now the man had relations with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and she said, ‘I have gotten a man child with the help of the Lord.’” God established the church to meet needs and remove aloneness. Matt. 16:18 “. . . I will build My church.” Divorce increases aloneness. One of the great tragedies of our day is the domino effect of divorce on a multitude of relationships. In divorce, one person leaves the home and the custodial parent usually is less available, consequently depriving children of vital needs. As adults, these children find it difficult to give those things they did not receive as children (“freely you received, freely give” Matt. 10:8). As their marriage fails from a lack of intimacy, the divorce cycle begins and the loneliness begins—for everyone involved. The church must become a safety net to remove aloneness. As marriage and families fall apart, the church must come along and become a needed safety net to heal the relational hurts, and remove aloneness through relationships with significant others. You do not have to be alone. Just because you are not married does not mean that you are destined to be alone. Initiate with your family. If there is unresolved family conflict, be the first to own your part by “taking the log out of your own eye” (Matt. 7:5). The relational deficiencies that fail marriages are often the ones left undeveloped by avoiding conflict with family members. Initiate healthy relationships in a Bible-believing church. Don’t wait for others to enter your world. Be bold, be aggressive, and initiate. Enter another’s world even if no one enters your world (“give and it shall be given to you” Lu. 6:38). Try to fix the problems that most frustrate you about the church, and you will probably discover your spiritual gift in the process. Serve the church body with your spiritual gift and you will be surprised at how quickly your aloneness is removed as you develop significant relationships with others. In what ways do you have strong relationships within marriage, family, and church?  |
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| About Karl Elkins Karl Elkins, LPC, ThM, MA, CSC, BCPCC, DAPA has 25 years of counseling experience and is an Adjunct Instructor at College of Biblical Studies teaching Marriage and Family courses. He is Founder and President of Christway Counseling Center P.C. specializing in marriage and family counseling. He earned a Master’s degree in Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, and a Master’s degree in Counseling from Colorado Christian University. He was formerly on staff with Intimate Life Ministries and director of a Houston Minirth-Meier New Life Clinic. He is married to Terry Elkins and has two grown children. |
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| Other Upcoming Opportunities Three-Day Accelerated Marriage Counseling (AMC)™ Includes all of the topics, instruction, and counseling projects in the Two-Day Marriage Clinic™, but is completely private—you, your partner and the counselor only. More Info » Individual Counseling We offer individual counseling to couples desiring an introductory session or two, follow-up sessions, or focused counseling. More Info » Monthly Marriage Enrichment Group Ongoing accountability group helps you internalize the good practices you’ve learned, avoid returning to bad habits, and develop new marriage-building skills. Next meeting is on August 5. More Info » Contact Information Phone: (832) 358-0900 E-Mail: terry@christwaycounseling.com Web: www.christwaycounseling.com  |
| © 2010 Christway Counseling Center. All rights reserved. |
The fastest way to marriage harmony!