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Married & Young's Best of 2016

What a year it has been for Married and Young! Our community has grown tremendously and as we stand on the precipice of 2017, it would only be right if we take a look back at some of the great moments that transpired this year.
 
1. Great Articles by Great Writers
Married & Young would not be the online community that you love without daily content geared toward singles, dating, engaged and married couples. Here are 5 writers that brought us some of our top articles in 2016:

2. Social Media Growth
We reached more people via our Facebook (47k people engaged) and Instagram (22k people engaged) accounts, which means that more and more singles, dating, engaged and married couples are being enriched by the message of Married & Young!
3.  Singles Take Over with TOSC & TOU
We heard our singles loud and clear and we did something about it in 2016. The Online Single’s Conference (TOSC) was hugely successful in March of this year with over 19 speakers and hundreds of registrants. Singles again showed us how serious they were about preparing to not just find the right person but be the right person through their participation in and our launch of The One University (TOU) in November.
4. Founders of Married & Young, Jamal & Natasha Miller, Welcome Baby Girl #2:
Melodie Grace Miller arrived as Jamal’s twin in 2016. Natasha was just an incubator but we watched two young, married people grow deeper in love with not just one but two beautiful baby girls.
5. Surveys, Webinars, and Trainings oh my! 
Believe it or not, you’ve only seen a piece of what makes Married and Young relevant, successful and effective. In addition to the webinars and trainings offered consistently throughout 2016, in August, we emailed you a very short survey geared toward singles, dating, engaged and married couples. The information we gained from your participation in the survey was invaluable and helped and continues to help us tailor the content and resources that we provide just for you!
 
As you can see, Married & Young spread its wings in 2016, but this is just the beginning. 2017, we’re ready for take off so stayed tuned because this year will be record-breaking!
 
Whether we’re preparing singles, dating and engaged couples for marriage or keeping married couples thriving, enriched and passionate about their spouses the mission of Married and Young is still the same, MARRIAGE GOD’S WAY!
 

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Dating/Courting Engaged Home Marriage News Parenting Uncategorized

Balancing the Prophet and Person in Marriage

From the Desk of The Modern Day Cindi: There are few things I have considered more challenging as a prophetic person than giving directions with no answers OR bringing validity in ambiguity. Balancing the prophet and the person in marriage is equally interesting.
When I first met my husband, I just started to understand who I was in the kingdom of God.  I knew that I received understandings or revelations from the Lord, but I had not yet linked that the open ear to heaven during the night and what I saw during the day was a gift. I did, however, begin to realize something new was happening. And to my delight, the more I pressed in, the more understanding I received.
Naturally, there are insights that God gives and gifts a prophetic person. As a wife and a seer, I believe that the gift has taken on new life as I have been given insights that I did not have before for: protection of the family, to aid in vision delivery, and alignment with God’s will. Because I have been given an opportunity to go beyond the veil, my communication to heaven and hubby has to be well-timed and considerate, placing extra attention to the sensitivity of my spouse because of his role in the marriage, as well as in the kingdom.
As a result, there have been many times that my attempts to deliver insight or revelation to my husband may not have been received or even taken seriously. I had to learn not to let his rebuffs deter what needed to be said as a vessel of the Lord. I also had to consistently undergo a character check to ensure it was not a flaw within myself that has created a barrier or impediment for the word of the Lord being received. Moreover, I had to remind myself not to over-personalize anything and stick to the mission/message at hand.
Equally while concerned about my character, I have to balance that with the word of God. As a prophetic person, even in my spirituality, I am still a human created to do Gods’ will on earth, so the word of the Lord is just as applicable in my life as it is in the lives of others. Therefore, as a wife, I am constantly thinking of not hurting or offending my husband e.g. not being a nag, not destroying communication, building up credibility, and still honoring my spouse.
Hence, although we speak the word of the Lord, we are not God; so with our spouse and the rest of the family unit here are a few things to remember to balance the prophet and the person in the marriage:

  1. Pray, Pray, Pray. Our first response to everything is prayer, especially in the home. Praying is our first line of defense, our weapon of warfare, and our direct channel to the Lord. We are not praying to get our way, but praying God’s will. It is the only way you can receive the revelation of God and restore peace. (James 5:16)
  2. God delights in peace, not discord; he is not the author of confusion. (Proverbs 6:19; I Corinthians 14:33)
  3. Exercise wisdom (Proverbs 4: 6-7)
  4. Know how to adjust your tone how to approach an area of sensitivity (Proverbs 16: 24 and Proverbs 15:1)
  5. Don’t be ruled by your emotions Prophetic people are sensitive; super sensitive! I have had to learn through much trial and error not to take anything personal, not to project my opinion, and also know how to let the spirit of the Lord speak when I could not. (Jeremiah 17:9)

 
 

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Engaged Home Marriage News Spiritual Intimacy

Being Married to a Prophetic Person

I always saw “Godly marriages”. It was nothing new. I saw strong men that was loved, respected, and supported by his wife. And the husbands adored and protected their wives and family. These were the examples that I saw and wanted to pattern my marriage after.
From what I could tell, the husbands understood their wives and the wives spoke the same language as their husbands. I had no idea what that process looked like, but It’s safe to say that each marriage had its own specific journey. So on January 2, 2009, I began my journey with my wife and there were some things for me to learn…
Little did I know I was marrying a woman that operated strongly in the prophetic realm. To be quite honest, she was growing in her awareness of that as well. There were times that she would hear from the Lord and she would admonish me to change an action or bring to my attention she was aware of a situation and I thought she was being controlling or a know it all.
My misinterpretation was a big point of contention in our marriage. It wasn’t until a couple of years into the marriage that I began to seek an understanding of her gift.
What I realize is that many marriage forums are aimed at being equally yoked and like-minded; however, rarely have I heard of any valiant efforts to understand each other’s gifts and strengths spiritually as well as naturally. So in an effort to pay it forward, here’s what I learned from being married to a prophetic person:
1. The gift of prophecy/office of the prophet carries a heavy burden.
There are times when the prophetic individual experiences correction for others and the prophet doesn’t want to be perceived as judgmental; they battle with saying what they see because they don’t want to offend.
2. Prophetic individuals are super-sensitive to the supernatural realm.
This is important to understand as it relates to environments and relationship building. A prophetic individual’s ability to exist in certain environments may seem limited, but it’s because of the things that they are discerning in the spirit realm that may be “off”.
3. Prophetic individuals pray ALOT!
I mention this because it seemed kind of odd to me that my wife would start praying randomly while driving in the car or in a movie theatre. Don’t get me wrong, she’s not a weirdo that walks around praying obtusely in public, but I’ve noticed that with her and others, their prayer life is quite robust!
4. A prophetic individual’s tone and presence is often very strong.
When they speak, it’s with the full weight and glory of the Lord. (Let that sink in for a minute.) Because they have been in the presence of God so much during prayer, they carry His countenance on them tremendously.
5. Prophetic individuals are very watchful and perceptive, often picking up on things that are uncommon and overlooked. My wife will see the cause of something before the outcome is even revealed.
I highlight just a few elements of prophetic people in an effort to help someone that is married to a person with these gifts. The burden of that gift is heavy and the spouse must understand that reality and do everything possible to undergird them in love, truth, prayer, and intimacy. When I started to understand these things, it put my wife at ease and lifted tension from our marriage.
 
Do everything possible to understand your spouse’s gifts. Accept them without judgment or opinion and help them to develop it. The gift that they have is for your family and God’s kingdom!

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News

My Opinion on "Married at First Sight" | New Reality Show

Married at First Sight is a new reality show airing tonight.  They are taking 6 ridiculously courageous and possibly idiotic men and women who will agree to be paired up by relationship experts.  This is not a blind date, but a blind marriage.  Each couple will commit to be legally married all before they see the person. The show will then follow them for 6 weeks at which they will have the decision to legally divorce or continue in the marriage.
My honest opinion.  I’m not mad about pairing up two strangers based upon their compatibility because its been done for hundreds of years in other countries. Arranged marriages are apart of many countries process by which they allow their parents to choose their spouses without ever meeting them.  I have watched many interviews by couples who were arranged and happy with their marriage.
Where I become very opposed at this experiment is the option they are giving them to divorce after only 6 weeks.  Marriage IS NOT an experiment.  Marriage is an COMMITMENT!  This reveals hollywood’s mentality towards marriage.  If you’re not happy, then get out.  Marriage is not about you, but everything about the other person.  Happiness doesn’t keep a marriage together, commitment does.
We can all agree that 6 weeks is a spit in the face to God’s invention of covenant.  God loves us by making covenant with us through His son committing to love unconditionally no matter the circumstance.  This is how husbands love their wives, and wives love their husbands.
When Christ died for us, He died for us while we were still sinners!  He didn’t wait to see who he liked to then die for them, but through His commitment to be beat, humiliated, and nailed to the cross, He chose us.
They have reduced marriage down to a humanistic invention that completely eradicates God’s purpose of creating marriage which was to lay our life down for our spouses which make us more like Him ultimately bringing glory to Jesus! Marriage has nothing to do with our happiness and everything to do with pleasing to God.
I end with this quote by John Piper, “God is most gloried in us, when we are most satisfied in Him”.
What are your thoughts?  Lets talk about this as a christian community!