Matt and Liz served their first Marriage Encounter in February and have signed up to serve on the December 9-10th Marriage Encounter
The weekend was better than we’d hoped for – and we already had high hopes going into it!
If Pam and Steve gave us good feedback, it definitely wasn’t just down to me and Liz – a healthy slice of that credit needs to go to them as amazing teachers.
Why Marriage Encounter?
We talk about lots of things as a couple. Inevitably, that runs into some miscommunications too … which is why we find ourselves laughing so much when standup comedians joke about the differences between men and women, and we see ourselves in their routines. What we both enjoyed so much about Engaged Encounter (2014) and Marriage Encounter (2016) was the content had us ask questions of one another we might not ordinarily ask – not because they were awkward/uncomfortable – but because they might not be on our radar. The classes were a great way to learn more about one another, and a commitment to continual learning is a promise we’ve made to one another.
What pushed us to volunteer?
Two things at our 2016 Marriage Encounter
- Sermon on the amount. We are grateful for what Marriage Encounter has done for our relationship, and the organization MUST be sustained long-term. We have the time to help, we feel we owe a duty to give back, and the sermon was a call to action.
- The age gap between the lead couples and the average attendee. Whilst our team brought wonderful wisdom, we felt we weren’t able to relate to some of the sharing.
First impressions
We were not prepared for the pouring of heartfelt thanks. Affirmation isn’t why we chose to volunteer (and it isn’t why we will volunteer again); so it actually came as quite a shock. Almost a day later…we’re still trying to process it, to be honest.
