Table of Contents
Acknowledgments 9
Introduction 11
1 Eleven Rules About Marriage chat You Won't Learn in School 13
2 Building Your Home on the Rock 17
3 Marriage Is a Gift 21
4 The Year of Wet Cement 25
5 Facades and Storefronts 29
6 The Seven Nonnegotiables of Life (Part One) 34
7 The Seven Nonnegoriables of Life (Part Two) 38
8 Marriage Is Not About You 42
9 A Grander Plan 46
10 Leaving Your Parents: The Balancing Act 49
11 Till Death Do Us Part 54
12 Sex Outside of Marriage: Where Life and Truth Collide 58
13 The Big Day 63
14 About Your Honeymoon 68
15 Don't Be a Grasshopper 72
16 The New Normal 76
17 The Very Best Single Piece of Advice I Can Give You 80
18 A Marriage with No Hope (Part 1) 84
19 A Marriage with No Hope (Parr 2) 88
20 Who Is Your Closest Neighbor? 92
21 Marriage Secrets from the Real Experts 96
22 You Have the Power 100
23 The Shattering of Glass 103
24 Emotional Adultery 106
25 Setting Up Guardrails 110
26 The Shadow of the Past 113
27 When Conflicts Keep Popping Up 117
28 Frequent Forgiveness 120
29 The Grand Illusion 123
30 What About Children? 127
31 You're Joining a Family 131
32 If Only We'd Known 135
33 What Robs Men of Courage? (For the Husband-to-Be) 139
34 Five Marks of a Man (For the Husband-to-Be) 143
35 Becoming a Spiritual Leader (For the Husband-to-Be) 147
36 Essential Number One: Make God's Word a Priority (For the Wife-to-Be) 151
37 Essential Number Two: Love Your Husband Unconditionally (For the Wife-to-Be) 154
38 Essential Number Three: Become a Helper to Your Husband (For the Wife-to-Be) 157
39 Who Does the Housework? 161
40 Making Decisions as a Couple 165
41 Keep on Running 170
Appendix: The Secret to Building a Great Marriage and Family 175
