Smalley Marriage Radio

This is the second show on the series titled, Infected with my father. We focus on Greed and what it does to your life, relationships, and how to overcome greed with a powerful antidote. An excellent resource for your relationships! Based on our Smalley Intensive program that over 96% of alumni couples would recommend to a friend in need! Purchase Here ARTIST HIGHLIGHT FOURTEEN40 - Lucky Number 13 - Click here to view on iTunes

This is our first in a series of 4 shows about the 4 parasites that destroy your life and spirituality! Show #1 deals with the parasite of pride and what you can do to vaccinate yourself from it. Pride truly does mess up the things that matter most to you in life, like your spouse, children, job, and relationship with Christ. Don't let pride destroy you, learn to defeat it and live victoriously! Here is a list of the verses we talked about that you can begin downloading now - 100 + Verses p.s. We are still working on a good link to the test on pride, the old link is dead and there's not another good one out there that we've found yet. Purchase a copy today - click here Purchase a copy today - click here

Last show we highlighted my dad's worst, but this show we highlight his best! Learn what he says is the best thing he ever did for his marriage and how you can do it for yours as well!

Today my father, Gary, and I talk about the 1 thing he regrets most in his more than 47-years of marriage. Find out what it is, and what you can do to defend against it in your own marriage.

The biggest part of the interview ended up dealing with a spouse who isn't saved! Find out how Jim and Sheri dealt with this in their own marriage! Jim and Sheri Mueller founded Growthtrac Ministries — a 501(c)(3) Christian, non-profit organization — in 2001. Jim and Sheri grew this ministry as they resourced the couples they mentored. Since its inception, Growthtrac was a one-stop resource for marriage and spiritual information, but early on expanded its vision from a marriage preparation focus to an expansive Christian-marriage resource. Below is a list of some of the questions: Good grief Jim! What aren’t you doing for marriages! Web articles, radio programming, interviews, Facebook, twitter...the list goes on and on and on. Where’s the motivation come from to accomplish all this? How’d you come up with the url, growthtrac.com? In your opinion, what is the most helpful aspect at growthtrac.com for couples?

Learn how important forgiveness is for your relationship and the 9 things forgiveness is not! EPISODE 23 Book Report on Real Marriage - What forgiveness is not THIS EPISODE BROUGHT TO YOU BY The Smalley Center, find out why over 96% of our former clients would recommend our 1, 2, or 3 day marriage intensive to a friend or family member in need of help. Rediscover happiness at SmalleyCenter.com. KEY VERSE Colossians 3:13 “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” NOTES When we are sinned against, we need to forgive quickly. Jesus’ words on this are haunting: “Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.”a We cannot simply ask God to forgive our sins; we must also extend that same forgiveness to others. (Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 91). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.) It is important to note, however, what forgiveness is not: Forgiveness is not denying, approving, or diminishing sin that is committed against us. Forgiveness is not naivety. Forgiveness is not enabling sin. Forgiveness is not waiting for someone to acknowledge sin, apologize, and repent. Forgiveness is not forgetting about sin committed against us. Forgiveness is not dying emotionally and no longer feeling the pain of the transgression. Forgiveness is not a one-time event. Forgiveness is not reconciliation. Forgiveness is not neglecting justice. Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (pp. 92-93). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. Forgiveness is loving despite sin. (Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 94). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.) NEXT EPISODE THIS EPISODE WAS BROUGHT TO YOU BY The Smalley Center, find out why over 96% of our former clients would recommend our 1, 2, or 3 day marriage intensive to a friend or family member in need of help. Rediscover happiness at SmalleyCenter.com.

Michael Smalley responds to the parenting technique displayed on the latest YouTube sensation with over 23 million views after just 6 days. Tommy Jordan might want to listen to this one to make sure he makes different parenting choices. EPISODE 22 Facebook Parenting: For the troubled teen. THIS EPISODE BROUGHT TO YOU BY The Smalley Center, find out why over 96% of our former clients would recommend our 1, 2, or 3 day marriage intensive to a friend or family member in need of help. Rediscover happiness at SmalleyCenter.com. KEY VERSE Deuteronomy 6:6-9 “And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today.7 Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.8 Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” NOTES The newest YouTube sensation is the Facebook Parenting video by Tommy Jordan, a frustrated father wanting to get his daugther’s attention....the question for me is, is this going to work? People commenting on his video are saying things like: Tommy for President! Great parenting you show her who pays the bills!!! I totally understand the guys point of view, she doesn't need to post her problems on fb and it's the second time she had done it so obviously she had it coming. Great respect for you sir. Here’s my problem with the video: He’s responding immaturely to her immaturity....that never works He stuck to the facts, and didn’t even try to get to the feelings Punishments tend to be worthless if the child doesn’t know about them in advance Parenting hero? No. Typical example of the parent trying to do the right thing, but blowing it with their strategy. NEXT EPISODE I will shoot my outdoor refrigerator because it stopped working and I’m just plan mad about it! THIS EPISODE WAS BROUGHT TO YOU BY The Smalley Center, find out why over 96% of our former clients would recommend our 1, 2, or 3 day marriage intensive to a friend or family member in need of help. Rediscover happiness at SmalleyCenter.com.

EPISODE 21 A book report: Real Marriage: the truth about sex, friendship, and life together INTRO This is Michael Smalley, the host of the Smalley Podcast: inspiration for your relationships! THIS EPISODE BROUGHT TO YOU BY The Smalley Center, find out why over 96% of our former clients would recommend our 1, 2, or 3 day marriage intensive to a friend or family member in need of help. Rediscover happiness at SmalleyCenter.com. KEY VERSE “When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things..” 1 Corinthians 13:11 (Interesting that this is in the smack dab in the chapter on love! NOTES There is nothing wrong with being a boy, so long as you are a boy. But there is a lot wrong with being a boy when you are supposed to be a man. To paraphrase Paul: “When I was a boy, I talked like a boy, I thought like a boy, I reasoned like a boy. When I became a man, I put childish and boyish ways behind me.”a A lot of guys fight the transition from boy to man because they despise responsibility. Enabling this type of guy are a legion Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 43). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. Tough and Tender Honor your wife emotionally and physically Here are a few practical tips for husbands in addition to some of the things mentioned above: As the family leader, model humility, honesty, repentance, service, study, and worship. Your life preaches at least as loudly as your words, so teach and model humble godliness by the grace of God. Make sure everyone in your family has a good, age-appropriate Bible that they regularly read. Read the Bible yourself and with them so they are encouraged to read on their own. Buy good Christian books for everyone in your family to read. Include Christian biographies among those books. Choose good books that you and your wife can be reading together, including books of the Bible, and discuss what you are learning. Have dinner together with your family most nights, and use that time to pray together, keep a journal log of prayer requests for other people, and read a portion of the Bible and talk about it together. Place a hand on the head of each of your children every day and pray over them. Then kiss them on the head and make sure they often get a loving hug. Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 63). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. NEXT EPISODE Taking out the trash: forgiveness! THIS EPISODE WAS BROUGHT TO YOU BY The Smalley Center, find out why over 96% of our former clients would recommend our 1, 2, or 3 day marriage intensive to a friend or family member in need of help. Rediscover happiness at SmalleyCenter.com.

Michael discusses chapter 2 from Mark and Grace Driscoll's Real Marriage. Learn the importance of building a lasting friendship with your spouse and how that impacts your happiness with each other. NOTES EPISODE 20 A book report: Real Marriage: the truth about sex, friendship, and life together; Friends with Benefits (Chapter 2) THIS EPISODE BROUGHT TO YOU BY The Smalley Center, find out why over 96% of our former clients would recommend our 1, 2, or 3 day marriage intensive to a friend or family member in need of help. Rediscover happiness at SmalleyCenter.com. KEY VERSE “This is my beloved, and this is my friend.” Song of Songs 5:16 NOTES Chapter 1 is their life story - pretty awesome testimony and worth a read! Chapter 2: Friend with benefits: The chapter is basically about how to develop a friendship with each other. “But by the grace of God, Luther had an epiphany that changed not only his life but also the lives of countless others. While studying the Bible, he learned that righteousness is a gift God gives by grace from and faith in Jesus Christ and not something earned or merited through human religious and moral performance. (Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (pp. 19-20). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.) “One of the reasons Martin gave for his marriage was to spite the devil, which is perhaps the least romantic statement ever uttered.” (Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 20). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.) BUT BY THE END OF THEIR MARRIAGE THEY WEREN’T JUST FRIENDS, BUT LOVERS WHO TRULY CARED FOR EACH OTHER. “Husbands and wives who want their marriages to be enduring and endearing must be friends.” (Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 24). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.) “Friendship is costly in everything— time, energy, emotion, and sometimes money.” (Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 26). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.) “In closing, the earnest pursuit of a good marriage can quickly become overwhelming there are so many things to work on. We, too, have felt this anxiety: Where do we start? How can we possibly work on spirituality, communication, scheduling, sex, spirituality, finances, family-of-origin issues, and so forth, all at once? But we’ve also found that by always working on our friendship, the rest of marriage seems to sort itself out in time. So we would commend to you the goal of devoting the rest of your life to being a better friend to your spouse.” (Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.) NEXT EPISODE The chapter: Men and marriage leave your parents’ home; finish your education or vocational training; start a career-track job, not a dead-end-Joe job; meet a woman, love her, honor her, court her, and marry her; parent children with her (Gen. 2:24). (Driscoll, Mark (2012-01-03). Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, and Life Together (p. 42). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.) THIS EPISODE WAS BROUGHT TO YOU BY The Smalley Center, find out why over 96% of our former clients would recommend our 1, 2, or 3 day marriage intensive to a friend or family member in need of help. Rediscover happiness at SmalleyCenter.com.

Gary and Michael Smalley discuss what it takes to have a fantastic Valentine's Day with your spouse!

Michael shares about a new website shared with him that can help keep your family safe and he talks about the importance of accountability for a family.

Are you putting your spouse in place of God? Find out on today's show!

The bible seems to tell us that there is no such thing as compatibility. Why? Because of sin! Yet many couples feel like it shouldn’t be this hard - but nothing in life that is worth having is easy! Listen to how Michael explains this powerful section from Timothy Keller's book, The Meaning of Marriage.

The first ever Skype interview for the Smalley Podcast is with Michael's dad, Gary Smalley! Gary shares, or as Michael put it "Smalley'fied", healthy communication down to 3 easy steps.

Michael shares what he is learning from Timothy and Kathy Keller's book on marriage titled, The Meaning of Marriage. Today you'll learn the history of marriage and why marriages are in trouble today because of an important social change.