tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8962661296894794026.post7263069673597896888..comments2023-10-20T11:21:43.858-04:00Comments on Myrtle's Turtles: Showing Marriage Some LoveAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02565497168653746564noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8962661296894794026.post-52541281146929568912011-01-14T09:10:46.767-05:002011-01-14T09:10:46.767-05:00Oh, by the way! BEAUTIFUL wedding photos!!! What a...Oh, by the way! BEAUTIFUL wedding photos!!! What a lovely bride you were! I am intrigued by the cultural background of your husband! :) You are a beautiful couple! I will definitely be praying for you and your family and your marriage.Mining for Diamondshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14926572748712180041noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8962661296894794026.post-85769270686995993762011-01-14T09:06:54.142-05:002011-01-14T09:06:54.142-05:00Wow...you raise some really good points in this po...Wow...you raise some really good points in this post. Where do I begin? I'm about to open a can of worms with my response, but...here goes! (No flames, please! :))Right now, we don't have a church home. But when we did, I have to be honest in saying that I do not feel there was a lot of support for marriages. I found it especially hard in my situation in that we were dealing with serious mental health issues in my marriage. (I find that in general, churches have no clue how to deal with that issue. It's sad, but it is very true.)<br /><br />I have to be very honest in saying that the best support I found for my marriage during an especially difficult time came from outside of the church setting, but yet from other believers. The best support I found was in people who prayed for me and my hubby. God led me to specific people who became my "prayer team". There were a husband/wife pastor team (of a church that I did not attend) who stood by us in dedicated prayer and intercession. I went to conferences where I received ministry. I had other friends who were lifting us up in prayer. I had an amazing counselor...a trained, professional psychologist who also understood mental health issues, that happened to be a godly man. He was AWESOME. After having great success with him, I vowed I would never again go to "pastoral counseling", for deep issues, but a real, trained, professional counselor. I even found prayer and support online. People really open up online in ways that they feel they can't in their own churches...so not only have I been blessed by the ministry I've received, but I've been able to help others.<br /><br />Overall I have to say that the best support I ever got for my marriage did not come from church, but it came from relationships in the Body of Christ "at large". The best support that I've ever gotten as a believer in my walk with the Lord has come through community...and ironically the best community I've ever experienced has been outside the 4 walls of any church, and mostly with people I didn't even attend church with! That has been not only my personal experience, but I come across more and more people who feel the same way. Often times pastors are going through their own stuff in their own marriages behind closed doors...they don't have support either. Too busy with "church stuff". Or other times people put on their "church face" and just don't get real, for whatever reason. <br /><br />The question is, why is that? I think it has some to do with the quality of real, deep, meaningful relationships, which I find lacking in groups like the ones you've listed. However, based on your testimony, your best support came simply through getting together in an intimate setting regularly with close friends...I bet you prayed for one another, "shared life" together...there is strength in that. The church does very little to really provide that today, although there are all kinds of programs that give the impression that they do. <br /><br />Ok, off my soapbox now. :)I know I sound like I'm downing church, but I do think there are real issues when it comes to authentic fellowship, relationship and community and that is where at least some of the breakdown is.Mining for Diamondshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14926572748712180041noreply@blogger.com