Be Devoted: Restoring Friendship, Passion, and Communion in Your Marriage

by Bob Schuchts, Christopher West (Foreword), Wendy West (Foreword)

Winner of a third-place award for marriage and family life books from the Catholic Media Association. Drawing from his popular healing conferences, forty years of marriage, and decades of clinical work as a couple’s therapist, bestselling author Bob Schuchts presents his first resource for married and engaged couples and those who desire true love in their Be Devoted. This highly anticipated guide delivers sound Catholic teaching, rich storytelling, and practical tools for healing, along with psychological insights and expertise to help couples create a relationship that is rich in trust, passion, and unity. The key to a healthy and passionate marriage is as simple as fostering genuine love and affection, or devotion, according to retired couple’s therapist and healing expert Bob Schuchts of the John Paul II Healing Center. True devotion only develops, however, when both spouses take responsibility for their actions and emotional wounds—something each of us brings to all of our relationships. These wounds, which are often rooted in childhood and past relationships, exist in all of us to some degree, making it difficult for couples to cultivate friendship, resolve conflicts, and build trust. Drawing on the riches of St. John Paul II’s theology of the body, Be Devoted is an essential guide to healing from these wounds within your marriage, while providing practical tools for cultivating unity. The first part of the book focuses on building intimacy, unity, and communion, and the second part offers wisdom and guidance for restoring trust when it is damaged. You’ll find practical tools for cultivating intimacy, resolving conflicts, and restoring sexual passion. To help you engage deeply and prayerfully, Be Devoted Take A Moment reflection questionsprayer guides for couplesscripts for apologizing and tackling difficult discussionspractical ways for understanding and working through conflictsspiritual exercises for healing past woundsprompts for journalingappendices with extended prayer exercises and resources

Genres: Marriage, Faith, Spirituality, Theology, Religion, Catholic

225 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 21, 2020

About the author

Dr. Bob Schuchts, Ph.D. is the founder of the John Paul II Healing Center and the author of the best-selling book, Be Healed: Encountering the Powerful Love of Jesus in Your Life, and other numerous titles. He has also contributed to a variety of other publications and has published resources available through the Center.

Bob spent more than 30 years as a therapist, while also teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in marriage and family relationships, human development, applied psychology, and marriage and family therapy. He held adjunct professor positions at Florida State University; Tallahassee Community College and the Center for Biblical Studies in Tallahassee, Florida. He has also taught courses at the Theology of the Body Institute and the Augustine Institute.

Reviews

[Hanna Richter · Rating 4 out of 5]

First part I'd rate a 2.5 but the second half got better. Would recommend to anyone who wants a good refresher/enrichment for their marriage, or for a couple that is struggling. It would also be good for engagement but isn't the primary audience.

The activities at the end of each chapter were good ideas and exercises that I've never seen in other marriage prep/enrichment resources. If you actually want to get full use out of the book, I'd read it with your spouse.

The author is Catholic but most of the material could apply to any Christian.

Overall, would recommend to all married couples to read at some point!

[SweetAileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me for marriage prep and I’m really glad that my fiancé and I chose to read this book because I believe it has a lot of helpful information. I wasn’t always too big of a fan of the author’s writing style but overall it is a solid book. It was made more so for couples whose marriages are struggling, but is helpful for newlyweds since it offers a lot of tools for when you’re facing any sort of conflict in your marriage.

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so much more than a “how-to” on Catholic marriage. It’s like a deep, soul-searching retreat that makes you reflect not just on your relationship, but on your own heart and capacity for love. The author, a widower, doesn’t just give advice; he invites you in to witness the beauty and many struggles of his own marriage. He shares the moments when he and his wife were in sync, and the moments when they were on the road to divorce. He vulnerably explores what it means to love someone well, how he could have been a better lover and how his wife could have loved him better, all with such tenderness and reverence.

Our marriage prep priest recommended my fiancé and I read this together. I’m so glad we did. After finishing it, I immediately thought, we need to read this again every 5 or 10 years! Much of the end of chapter reflection questions are geared toward couples who’ve been married for a while, but even as an engaged couple, the insights alone are worth the read :).

[Kevin W · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great resource to have on hand for marriage prep, marriage counseling, and perhaps wedding homilies. However, I would personally recommend a couple read Schuchts’ “Be Healed” first chronologically, as that book can help an individual identify the wounds they carry and experience God’s healing. I think once that journey of healing for the individual is launched, that would be foundational in restoring and finding healing in a marriage. Then I’d recommend this book to address areas where the couple desires to, in the words of the subtitle, “restore friendship, passion, and communion” in their marriage.

[Roberto Lujan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. Must read for those who are getting married and are already married. It will help place Christ at the center of your relationship and enrich your marriage in the best way possible.

[Jennifer Rhineheimer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first part of this book's content should be part of every marriage prep course. At 50 years old, I learned a lot from this book. Perfect Bob Schuchts!

[AJ Devine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. Only 3 stars because the author thinks that it’s acceptable to say “sexual lovemaking”

[BlueFalkon95 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Catholic based devotional book to help engaged couples, the newly married or even long time married couples. I was intrigued by the introduction and how married life had began for Bob and his wife. The devotionals has been created by firstly reading the set passage and then reading Bobs reflection that demonstrates how God has helped them through their marriage bringing themselves closer together and to God. Lastly it’s answering questions which helps you to reflect back on the reading and how it can help improve your relationship and friendship to each other. “I voluntarily read and reviewed a free copy of this book from Ava Maria Press via Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”