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7 Secrets to an Awesome Marriage: Strengthen Your Most Intimate Relationship
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.
192 pages, Paperback
First published July 28, 2015
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109 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 17, 2015
Enduring and Beautiful Marriage
Twenty-five years of marriage have flown by. In many ways, my husband and I are not the same people who walked down the aisle in that big, beautiful church with pipe organ music and the aroma of gardenias in the air. Everything in our lives has changed — except one thing.
We are still working at our love.
Dr. Kim Kimberling offers practical advice and specific strategies in 7 Secrets to an Awesome Marriage that will motivate couples and inform the kind of hard work that goes into building a marriage that will go the distance.
His secrets are concise, memorable one-word commands:
1.STOP — Don’t keep doing the same things over and over and expecting different results! Claim your baggage, align your expectations with reality, and make changes that will lead to a stronger marriage.
2.START — Put God first and your spouse second. Start praying together as a couple; worship and serve together; commit together to seeking God and praying for each other.
3.CONNECT — Stop, look, and listen to your spouse to demonstrate that you are present to their words and emotions. Compassion, sincerity and empathy build connectivity in a marriage.
4.ENGAGE — Airing conflict (fight right!) is healthy and productive, but choose your battles carefully and make sure that strategies include taking responsibility for your own contribution to the problem and using words that facilitate reconciliation.
5.BALANCE — With four kids, scheduling time for each other has been our biggest challenge. Remembering that our marriage is our most important relationship provides motivation for better time and financial management.
6.MINGLE — The gift of intimacy is a mingling of souls and will be enhanced when couples respect each other and commit to a 24/7 demonstration of love.
7.FIGHT — If marriage is a game, husband and wife are on the same team. If marriage is a battle, husband and wife are fighting on the same side, and marriage is worth fighting for. Dr. Kimberling encourages his readers to make daily choices that enhance trust and strengthen the bond that builds an unshakeable foundation.
The seven secrets are great to know, but will only impact a marriage if the husband and wife put the steps into action. Solomon spoke of the three-fold cord that is not easily broken (Ecclesiastes 4:12), and he spoke more wisdom than he practiced. God stands ready to be the strengthening third in a marriage that nothing can tear apart. Now, that’s awesome.
This book was provided by Zondervan through the BookLookBloggers Program in exchange for my review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Twenty-five years of marriage have flown by. In many ways, my husband and I are not the same people who walked down the aisle in that big, beautiful church with pipe organ music and the aroma of gardenias in the air. Everything in our lives has changed — except one thing.
We are still working at our love.
Dr. Kim Kimberling offers practical advice and specific strategies in 7 Secrets to an Awesome Marriage that will motivate couples and inform the kind of hard work that goes into building a marriage that will go the distance.
His secrets are concise, memorable one-word commands:
1.STOP — Don’t keep doing the same things over and over and expecting different results! Claim your baggage, align your expectations with reality, and make changes that will lead to a stronger marriage.
2.START — Put God first and your spouse second. Start praying together as a couple; worship and serve together; commit together to seeking God and praying for each other.
3.CONNECT — Stop, look, and listen to your spouse to demonstrate that you are present to their words and emotions. Compassion, sincerity and empathy build connectivity in a marriage.
4.ENGAGE — Airing conflict (fight right!) is healthy and productive, but choose your battles carefully and make sure that strategies include taking responsibility for your own contribution to the problem and using words that facilitate reconciliation.
5.BALANCE — With four kids, scheduling time for each other has been our biggest challenge. Remembering that our marriage is our most important relationship provides motivation for better time and financial management.
6.MINGLE — The gift of intimacy is a mingling of souls and will be enhanced when couples respect each other and commit to a 24/7 demonstration of love.
7.FIGHT — If marriage is a game, husband and wife are on the same team. If marriage is a battle, husband and wife are fighting on the same side, and marriage is worth fighting for. Dr. Kimberling encourages his readers to make daily choices that enhance trust and strengthen the bond that builds an unshakeable foundation.
The seven secrets are great to know, but will only impact a marriage if the husband and wife put the steps into action. Solomon spoke of the three-fold cord that is not easily broken (Ecclesiastes 4:12), and he spoke more wisdom than he practiced. God stands ready to be the strengthening third in a marriage that nothing can tear apart. Now, that’s awesome.
This book was provided by Zondervan through the BookLookBloggers Program in exchange for my review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
July 21, 2015
7 Secrets to an Awesome Marriage by Dr. Kim Kimberling is such a wonderful book on how to keep your marriage from failing. He gives you 7 different things to do that aren’t hard or way out there, but very practial and very effective to keep you marriage alive the way God wants it to be.
This marriage book closely follows how God wants our marriages to be.
I was very amazed and helped with things that are simple, but very relative to a relationship.
Without God’s help and you putting Him first and following certain guidelines your marriage will fail or be just a relationship of two people living together.
I’m so taken with this book and these guidelines that I’m buying copies for all of my children. It is an AWESOME book. This is my favorite book of the year. I highly recommend it. A must have for all marriages.
I received my free copy from Net Galley for my review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am discl
This marriage book closely follows how God wants our marriages to be.
I was very amazed and helped with things that are simple, but very relative to a relationship.
Without God’s help and you putting Him first and following certain guidelines your marriage will fail or be just a relationship of two people living together.
I’m so taken with this book and these guidelines that I’m buying copies for all of my children. It is an AWESOME book. This is my favorite book of the year. I highly recommend it. A must have for all marriages.
I received my free copy from Net Galley for my review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am discl
June 15, 2020
I received this title as an ARC from NetGalley a couple of years ago, and somehow just got to reading it. This is a great read for couples getting ready for marriage as well as those who have been married for quite a while. Author Kimberling, outlines how we can unknowingly chip away at our relationship and offers ways to insulate it against the world. Even as a happily married woman of 30 years+, I was able to take a few tips that would make us closer to God and to each other. Glad I finally read it!
August 11, 2023
The author is describes in detail examples from his own marriage and from couples he has counseled. All of the advice and focus areas are good (especially the part about praying together!). I think this may have been more beneficial for me as a newlywed or if I was currently experiencing one of the specific challenges mentioned. But, toward the end of the book, there were a couple of things mentioned which were good reminders for me to take a look at my intentionality in some areas… earning an extra star.
December 9, 2019
Great information and real-life relatable stories, I really enjoyed the 7 secrets.
July 27, 2015
In this book Dr. Kimberling outlines his seven steps to an awesome marriage based on his years as a professional counselor. He is also a Christian leader, and this book combines both his Christian beliefs and professional training to help couples have an awesome marriage.
In the first step, STOP, the author discusses stopping the dysfunctional family patterns that most people come into a relationship with. He states that unless these patterns are identified and corrected, they will be repeated in every relationship a person has, so instead of leaving the relationship one should address these things in themselves and work on fixing them. Step two, START, discusses putting God first and your spouse second in your life. Step three is CONNECT which involves active listening and truly connecting with your partner. ENGAGE discusses choosing your battles and learning how to fight with each other in an appropriate and healthy way. Step five is BALANCE which discusses how to find the right balance between your marriage and all the other responsibilities in your life. MINGLE discusses sex inside the marriage and how to meet each other’s unique needs. Finally, FIGHT discusses fighting together to be on the same team rather than seeing each other as the enemy when life gets hard and things go wrong.
As a psychotherapist myself, I see the sound evidence based practice in the pages of this book. Anyone who can follow the advice in this book can and will have a better marriage. Of course reading a book isn’t a substitute for working with a trained therapist, but this gives readers a place to start. It is easy to read and understand and has examples from couples, which helps even more. In this day and age of selfishness and seeing only to one’s own needs, the contents of this book are much needed and will help couples get their priorities straight by putting God first and their spouse second. If both partners in a marriage can do that, they can’t lose!
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 < http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa... : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
In the first step, STOP, the author discusses stopping the dysfunctional family patterns that most people come into a relationship with. He states that unless these patterns are identified and corrected, they will be repeated in every relationship a person has, so instead of leaving the relationship one should address these things in themselves and work on fixing them. Step two, START, discusses putting God first and your spouse second in your life. Step three is CONNECT which involves active listening and truly connecting with your partner. ENGAGE discusses choosing your battles and learning how to fight with each other in an appropriate and healthy way. Step five is BALANCE which discusses how to find the right balance between your marriage and all the other responsibilities in your life. MINGLE discusses sex inside the marriage and how to meet each other’s unique needs. Finally, FIGHT discusses fighting together to be on the same team rather than seeing each other as the enemy when life gets hard and things go wrong.
As a psychotherapist myself, I see the sound evidence based practice in the pages of this book. Anyone who can follow the advice in this book can and will have a better marriage. Of course reading a book isn’t a substitute for working with a trained therapist, but this gives readers a place to start. It is easy to read and understand and has examples from couples, which helps even more. In this day and age of selfishness and seeing only to one’s own needs, the contents of this book are much needed and will help couples get their priorities straight by putting God first and their spouse second. If both partners in a marriage can do that, they can’t lose!
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 < http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa... : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
July 26, 2015
According to Dr. Kim Kimberling, there are seven secret steps having an amazing marriage [1. Stop, 2. Start, 3. Connect, 4. Engage, 5. Balance, 6. Mingle, 7. Fight].
Each step is in a particular order, in which to build a better foundation for marital enrichment. If you feel that your marriage has lost its spark a bit, or if you're just looking for enlightenment toward a better marriage in general, this book provides the building blocks toward having the marriage in which you so desire. Being married, myself, I feel that we can all take certain steps to better our marriage, because marriage itself is hard. Anyone who is or has been married, will know this. It takes a lot of work and this book provides the stepping stones to get you on your way to a better marriage, overall!
Thanks, to BookLook Bloggers for providing me with this wonderful book to review!
Each step is in a particular order, in which to build a better foundation for marital enrichment. If you feel that your marriage has lost its spark a bit, or if you're just looking for enlightenment toward a better marriage in general, this book provides the building blocks toward having the marriage in which you so desire. Being married, myself, I feel that we can all take certain steps to better our marriage, because marriage itself is hard. Anyone who is or has been married, will know this. It takes a lot of work and this book provides the stepping stones to get you on your way to a better marriage, overall!
Thanks, to BookLook Bloggers for providing me with this wonderful book to review!
June 13, 2015
I really love how the author uses real life examples to teach. He realistically demonstrates what happens in a marriage both good and bad.
August 15, 2015
An easy read with very important points I thoroughly agree with. Plan to give this book to my young adult children to help equip them in their marriages.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews