Andy and Stacie Wood on how a marriage drifts from lovers to roommates, what working on it actually looks like, and the conversation about sex and intimacy the church usually avoids.

This conversation picks up where the weekend message left off. Watch "Stronger Marriages" first: https://youtu.be/XFandtFb3A8

In Episode 3 of Stronger, Andy and Stacie Wood sit down with Ariel Amaro the week they taught God's design for marriage, and they go where a Sunday message can't: the eight months they ran with no margin and the getaway that reset them, the weekly checkpoint and the shared calendar that keep a marriage current, what to do when the check engine light comes on, and why the difference between working in your marriage and working on it decides what year fifteen looks like.

Then they go where most churches don't: why God designed sex for marriage and what gets in the way of it, what Stacie wishes someone had told her before her wedding, why "consistently kind, then very kind" is a better plan than the gas pedal, and what Stacie says to the wife whose husband is caught in pornography and won't get help.

Married and drifting, married and fighting for it, or single and wondering what to hope for, this one is for you.

BONUS EPISODE TUESDAY
Andy and Stacie's hot takes on money, conflict, and how they work through disagreements. Coming Tuesday, October 6.

ONE THING TO DO THIS WEEK
If you're married: pick one thing this week that works on your marriage instead of in it. A weekly checkpoint, a date, or the conversation you've been putting off. Put it on the calendar. If you're single: write down what you want your marriage to be before you're in one, and pray for the person you haven't met yet. Then send this to a couple who needs it.

RESOURCES MENTIONED
Celebrate Recovery at Saddleback: https://saddleback.com/sections/get-care/celebrate-recovery/
Saddleback Cares: https://saddleback.com/care/
Female by Design podcast (Francie Winslow): https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/female-by-design/id1493541368

CHAPTERS
0:00 Coming up
0:54 Welcome: God's design for marriage
1:57 Episode three: Stronger Marriages
2:19 The Thin Mints story
4:12 What is marriage? Genesis 2:24, Matthew 19, Ephesians 5
6:46 Leaving, cleaving, and what isn't a marriage
8:45 Living like roommates
11:36 Working in your marriage vs. working on it
12:18 Eight months with no margin: the getaway
15:15 If your marriage were a car
17:17 Maintenance: the weekly checkpoint, the shared calendar, date nights
19:39 Getting away, two or three times a year
21:31 When the check engine light comes on
22:01 Keep it current: the four helpful lists
25:10 Agreements
26:50 "Can we schedule time to even have sex?"
28:07 Why the church avoids talking about sex
29:26 Stacie: "All I had heard was save it to marriage"
32:15 Symptom and source: consistently kind, then very kind
34:26 The gas pedal and the brakes
36:22 Getting to the source
38:39 When one spouse wants help and the other doesn't
41:41 To the wife carrying the faith alone
43:27 To the husband who feels like he's failing
46:27 Stay at the table
47:55 To the man with something under the surface
50:43 Bonus episode Tuesday

SCRIPTURE IN THIS EPISODE
Genesis 2:24 · Matthew 19:4-6 · Ephesians 5:28-31 · 1 Peter 3:1-2 · James 5:16 · Matthew 5:29 · Colossians 3:5

NEW EPISODES EVERY MONDAY
Every episode: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOvtcV3aqv-M
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id6812944219
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0MhCJU9jhDFc89e5HwigDw
Show site: https://stronger.saddleback.com

Stronger is recorded at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, and every episode starts with what was taught that weekend. Wherever you're listening from, this is for you too. Find a campus or join online: https://saddleback.com

You were never meant to be strong on your own.

#StrongerWithAndyWood #AndyWood #StacieWood #Saddleback #Marriage