Too many marriages are struggling or just surviving when they could be thriving. The "essentials" of an Awesome Marriage are the things that truly make a real and lasting difference in a marriage. They are the things that take an average marriage and turn it into an Awesome Marriage. In this mini book, Dr. Kim gives you 20 things you can do that will make a real impact in your marriage. Read this book and take your marriage up a notch!

All of us want an enduring marriage, a beautiful marriage we can believe in. That kind of marriage happens through intimacy. Intimacy requires hard work and a guide. Dr. Kim Kimberling is that guide and this book and its tools will show you how communication and intimacy in marriage can be yours. Kimberling offers insights like connecting every day in spite of what’s in the way, learning how to fight in the right ways, stopping the insanity of doing the same thing over and over even when it isn’t working, and finding that the best sex ever is well within the context of Christian marriages. Once these 7 secrets are a part of your marriage, you can stand together and fight anything that would ever try to tear your marriage apart. Whether you have just celebrated your first anniversary or your fiftieth, 7 Secrets to an Awesome Marriage by Dr. Kim Kimberling is for you. If you have a good marriage, this book can help you have a great marriage. If you are struggling, Kim Kimberling will help you turn the corner and make your marriage into what you want it to be.

Just as Masters and Johnson were pioneers in the study of human sexuality, so Dr. John Gottman has revolutionized the study of marriage. As a professor of psychology at the University of Washington and the founder and director of the Seattle Marital and Family Institute, he has studied the habits of married couples in unprecedented detail over the course of many years. His findings, and his heavily attended workshops, have already turned around thousands of faltering marriages. This book is the culmination of his life's work: the seven principles that guide couples on the path toward a harmonious and long-lasting relationship. Straightforward in their approach, yet profound in their effect, these principles teach partners new and startling strategies for making their marriage work. Gottman helps couples focus on each other, on paying attention to the small day-to-day moments that, strung together, make up the heart and soul of any relationship. Being thoughtful about ordinary matters provides spouses with a solid foundation for resolving conflict when it does occur and finding strategies for living with those issues that cannot be resolved. Packed with questionnaires and exercises whose effectiveness has been proven in Dr. Gottman's workshops, The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work is the definitive guide for anyone who wants their relationship to attain its highest potential. The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work is the result of Dr. John Gottman's many years of closely observing thousands of marriages. This kind of longitudinal research has never been done before. Based on his findings, he has culled seven principles essential to the success of any marriage. Maintain a love map. Foster fondness and admiration. Turn toward instead of away. Accept influence. Solve solvable conflicts. Cope with conflicts you can't resolve. Create shared meaning. Dr. Gottman's unique questionnaires and exercises will guide couples on the road to revitalizing their marriage, or making a strong one even better.

Every marriage will have good days and bad days. You will have mountaintops and valleys. You will have joys and sorrows. They are also the things over the years that continue to knit you together as one. This book will help you prepare for that journey as you learn to keep Christ first, to walk with Him, and to be open to all He wants for you. Whether you are dating, thinking about marriage, engaged, or already married, this book is for you. Read it together. Discuss the questions. Take both the Marriage Insights(r) Report and the PREPARE/ENRICH Couple Checkup. They are an essential part of this program. Let God prepare you for your own awesome marriage.

You aren't a licensed marriage and family therapist. You didn't do a doctoral dissertation on pastoral counseling. You're simply God's person caring for God's people in the local church. And the marriages in your church need help. Many pastors feel ill-equipped to handle the challenges that arise when a couple is going through marital difficulties. They feel lost and inadequate. What do you say? What counsel do you offer? Should I say anything or just listen? Do I schedule a follow-up appointment? Do I ask questions? What questions? If you are or have been in this situation before, this book offers you a practical guide to get started with the first sessions and then offers specific guidance on nine of the most common topics that come up in marriage counseling. Author and pastor Jonathan Holmes offers a solid, biblical theology and methodology to help you navigate through the world of marriage counseling with the fundamental conviction that God's word is powerful enough to address the deepest of marital issues, and robust enough to handle whatever might come your way. In each chapter, you'll meet a new couple dealing with a different issue, much like the people in your church, office, and neighborhood. Through the book you'll also hear advice from several respected voices in the biblical counseling community. Whether you're a novice or already knowledgeable, Counsel for Couples provides theologically sound and biblically practical tools to help you as you help couples in need.

From the foreword by Craig Groeschel: "Dr. Kim Kimberling has written a book with solid answers for today's serious marriage problems. His book, Secrets of an Awesome Marriage, may be the most practical, down-to-earth, scripturally grounded book on marriage I've seen. In this book, you won't find easy answers. If an awesome marriage were easy, every married couple would have one. What you will find is honest, time-tested, biblical truths that will teach you to fight fair, forgive freely, communicate openly, and love deeply. If you are not yet married, you'll learn how to prepare for marriage and unpack baggage from the past. If you are married (or engaged), you'll discover practical ways to center your marriage on God and balance your priorities in this fast-paced, overwhelming world. Dr. Kimberling will help you heal from hurts, overcome disappointments, and plan for the future you dream of living."

In their 30 years of shared ministry and marriage, Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa pastor Brian Brodersen and his wife, speaker and author Cheryl Brodersen, watched many couples struggle to build a lasting, fulfilling relationship. With the desire to understand God's path for their union, the Brodersens' turned to the Bible and learned how to view and experience marriage as an incredible gift from God. Now they share the ten essential "E" principles they discovered, showing readers how to: Entrust the relationship to God Eliminate unhealthy expectations Encourage one another Enlighten with spiritual truth Energize the relationship Endure by standing together in faith In this biblical and practical resource, newlyweds and longtime married couples will embrace the wholeness of God's plan for them to have the very best human love experience possible.