Make Your Marriage Ministry Proactive

By Michael C. Mack

How is your church helping married couples before they get into crisis mode? Lindy Lowry, founder of MarriedPeople (www.marriedpeople.org), says she”s found that while every church spends time and resources on helping marriages, efforts are mainly reactive rather than proactive (see the chart of her findings).

Lowry has found five steps beneficial in developing a proactive marriage ministry:

1. Begin with the end in mind. What is the purpose of marriage? To reflect the relationship between Christ and his church (Ephesians 5:32). The purpose of your strategy should match that.

2. Empower and equip leaders. In order to reach and help couples, you need leaders. Three keys: (1) make the experience great for leaders, (2) ask your leaders to find more leaders, and (3) target empty nesters.

3. Refine the message. Focus on the application, not just the content, of scriptural marriage principles. The “Four Habits of a Great Marriage” at MarriedPeople are love God first; have serious fun; respect and love; and practice your promise.

4. Choose your target audience. Will you focus your in-church marriage ministry on couples in crisis (reactive mode) or on discipling couples before they find themselves in crisis (proactive mode)? Can you “outsource” some or all of your counseling needs?

5. Develop a long-term strategy. Develop a plan for large groups, including how you leverage your weekend services, small groups for couples, and working with individual couples.