visualizations data sets people comments

The Myth Begins Last Sunday morning I presented the first of my series on The Myth America Contest. I'm really enjoying this because it's not only an attempt to be relevant and take a break from expository preaching, but it allows me the chance to challenge some of our cultural myths. For example, this first lesson was Myth Chemistry, subtitled EHarmony.Con (intentional changing of the M). I challenged the cultural myth that relationships are all about chemistry - finding your "soul-mate" is all about finding the person who answers the secret 25 questions the same as you do. While there's an element of truth to the idea, my counter argument is that relationships are about commitment not chemistry. This chemistry myth causes people to have unrealistic expectations, see relationships as automatic rather than hard work, and to have an excuse to end it when "the chemistry is gone." It's built on three other myths... 1. The Myth of Compatibility = if we are so alike we will be so close! Compatibility doesn't always build closeness. Sometimes it fosters competitiveness, comparing, and it's boring. We weren't made to be alike, but to like how we are made different. It's not about shared interests, it's about shared values. Love is not chemistry, it's a choice. 1 Cor.13:4-8 are choices, just as loving God is a choice. 2. The Myth of Conformity = "I want someone who will become what I want them to be." I call this the "They'll Change Syndrome". NO relationship will work where people think about controlling, molding, or training their mate. Relationship building is about giving not taking - or making! Eph.5:21-25 describes it as submitting and being like Christ, but this is about what we must be not what we must force "them" to be. 3. The Myth of Continuity = the fantasy of "the eternal honeymoon". The problem free marriage never existed and most young people are totally unprepared for the reality of working through relationship problems. After all - they have chemistry! BUT, do they have commitment? It's working through the problems that deepens a relationship and the love. That's why the Bible talks in terms of effort, work, and seeking - even in spiritual relationships. It's what we decide it will be - look a 1 Thess.5:12-18 and apply it to marriage! Would you say that our "Chemistry" with God is strong? He made us in His image! If it was about chemistry, we'd ALL be as close as angels to God! It's about choices and commitments and love that grows through trials and tough times. That's why "love covers a multitude of sins," - not because of a chemical formula, but a committed faith. This coming Sunday I'll be taking a look a Myth Youth. The subtitle is "Get the Wrinkles out!" (If you are one of those who download the lessons from the web page, be aware that our recorder crashed last week. They're making recording from the video tape and that will make each lesson be at least a week late. I'm hoping we get the new recorder in this week.)
eHarmony.com Commercial -- Prescreening Real life eHarmony couples were matched based on compatibility. Author: EHarmony ... Singles Relationship Couples Love Stories Success Marriage
From Kaira Rouda: You gotta love eHarmony even if you re not... If you're new here, you may want to read our Introduction and why we have no advertisements . If you're enjoying our articles, subscribe to our RSS feed . ( What is RSS? ) Got something to say? Add a topic . Thanks a lot for visiting! (Copied in entirety with permission from eBrand Marketing , dated 31 March 2008. Thanks, Kiara!) I ll admit it. I m a big fan of eHarmony.com and I m married and the mom of four. The reason I m a fan is the marketing genius and lessons we all can learn from the site and its approach. Launched in 2000, the site is the #1 trusted relationship destination on the website, and has kept that position even in the face of a lot of competition. Why? 1. A real person as founder. An authentic spokesperson for your brand can be amazingly powerful. 2. True differentiation. Back in an era where horoscopes were the best the lovelorn could turn to for guidance, eHarmony introduced its patented Compatibility Matching System. Brilliant. The site s scientific Relationship Questionaire is an intense process. Getting customers to complete the time-consuming questionnaire about themselves assures both buy in and belief in the service. If you believe in notion of self-fulfilling prophecies, this would be a great monetized example. People love quizzes that tell them about themselves. That s the start of a relationship with a brand. 3. Social networking, before it was a buzzword. By pushing only those candidates with high compatibility based on 29 relationship dimensions and giving the customer the choice of how frequently to communicate with their love prospects, they put the power in the hands of customers long before most brands. 4. Consumer control of the experience. See above. 5. Raving fans and product extensions. The eHarmony spots feature the happy couples born from the site 90 members on average are married every single day - and now the company offers the eHarmony Marriage wellness program to help married couples. 6. Tapping into consumer trends. Aside from all of the above, women love online dating and women are online. Combining both is brilliant. I predict women-focused, targeted ads to come. Hopefully, you can appreciate the brilliance no matter what industry you are in. I know I do. Let me know what you think! (Kaira Sturdivant Rouda is the author of Real You Incorporated: 8 Essentials for Women Entrepreneurs. With more than 20 years of experience in consumer marketing primarily focused on women Kaira currently is President of Real Living - a national real estate firm and franchisor, where she guides the brand. Visit her online for more about the book and upcoming speaking engagements, including the Marketing to Women conference.)
Religion, Marriage and eHarmony I don't have to tell you that religion has the potential to be one of the most divisive issues in our society. You need only open the newspaper to see that people with drastically different religious viewpoints can often be "incompatible," to put it lightly. In a relationship service like eHarmony, how do we handle the potential problems that religion can cause between two committed people? If you're even only slightly familiar with my viewpoint on marriage, you probably know that I'm a big proponent of similarity between two people. If you're going to be married and live together in a happy and loving relationship for the rest of your life, I would contend that similarities between you are like money in the bank. The significant differences you have are like withdrawals on that account. If you have a tremendous bank balance, then a few withdrawals hardly matter. But if you have incompatibility in a great many important areas, those funds can be seriously drawn down. Numerous compromises on issues that are important to one or both of you can eventually bankrupt the relationship. It won't be a surprise to you that the important areas for a long-term relationship are the 29 Dimensions that eHarmony uses to match you. We want you and your matches to be compatible in most of these 29 areas. Spirituality figures greatly in this calculus. I believe wholeheartedly that if you want to be well matched, the spiritual component must be in sync. On the most basic level, if your faith is important to you, you need to be matched with someone who is also passionate about a similar faith. If spiritual things don't hold an interest for you, you'll need to be matched with someone who shares your point of view. Following this philosophy, we try to match those who rate high in spiritual areas with those who share that particular faith. Buddhists with Buddhists. Christians with Christians. Muslims with Muslims. I believe this is the best way to ensure that religion doesn't become a battleground within a marriage. It's important to me that eHarmony be recognized as a place that welcomes all kinds of people. If you practice a religion, we want to help you marry well. If you are not spiritual in any way, we want to help you marry well. If you belong to a small sect of Judaism or Hinduism or Protestantism, we want to find someone who shares your faith (along with 28 additional dimensions of compatibility) and get you into the best marriage you have ever imagined. eHarmony's mission is to lower the divorce rate in North America significantly - first by 1 percent and then by 2 percent or 3 percent. If we were able to accomplish this goal, the effects would ripple through our culture in an exponential manner. For every 1 percent reduction in the divorce rate, we would positively affect 1 million people. A significant percentage of those helped by this success would be children. It is a challenging goal for all of us at eHarmony and one that we pursue with passion each day. Frankly, our best hope for reaching this goal is to make eHarmony a place that works for everyone, regardless of their religious backgrounds. The more people we can bring together with broad-based compatibility, the sooner our entire culture will benefit. source : http://www.eharmony.com/singles
This is your brain on love I saw this article in the LA Times and I found it quite interesting if not long. When you're attracted to someone, is your gray matter talking sense -- or just hooked? Scientists take a rational look. By Susan Brink, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer July 30, 2007 Her front brain is telling her he's trouble. Look at the facts, it says. He's never made a commitment, he drinks too much, he can't hold down a job. But her middle brain won't listen. Man, it swoons, he looks great in those jeans, his black hair curls onto his forehead so adorably, and when he drags on a cigarette, he's so bad he's good. His front brain is lecturing, too: She's flirting with every guy in the place, and she can drink even you under the table, it says. His mid-brain is unresponsive, distracted by her legs, her blouse and her come-hither stare. "What could you be thinking?" their front brains demand. Their middle brains, each on a quest for reward, pay no heed. Alas, when it comes to choosing mates, smart neurons can make dumb choices. Sure, if the brain's owner is in her 40s and has been around the block a few times, she might grab her bag and scram. If the guy has reached seasoned middle age, he might think twice about that cleavage-baring temptress. Wisdom -- at least a little -- does come with experience. But if the objects of desire are in their 20s, all bets are off. A lot will depend on the influence of Mom and Dad's marriage, the gossip and urgings of friends, and whether life experience has convinced these two brains that what they're looking at is attractive. She just might sidle over to Mr. Wrong and bat her eyes. And he could well give in to temptation. And so the dance of attraction, infatuation and ultimately love begins. It's a dance that holds many mysteries, to psychologists as well as to the willing participants. Science is just beginning to parse the inner workings of the brain in love, examining the blissful or ruinous fall from a medley of perspectives: neural systems, chemical messengers and the biology of reward. It was only in 2000 that two London scientists selected 70 people, all in the early sizzle of love, and rolled them into the giant cylinder of a functional magnetic resonance imaging scanner, or fMRI. The images they got are thought to be science's first pictures of the brain in love. The pictures were a revelation, and others have followed, showing that romantic love is a lot like addiction to alcohol or drugs. The brain is playing a trick, necessary for evolution, by associating something that just happened with pleasure and attributing the feeling to that magnificent specimen right before your eyes. All animals mate: The most primitive system in the brain, one that even reptiles have, knows it needs to reproduce. Turtles do it but then lay their eggs in the sand and head back to sea, never seeing their mate again. Human brains are considerably more complicated, with additional neural systems that seek romance, others that want comfort and companionship, and others that are just out for a roll in the hay. Yet the chemistry between two people isn't just a matter of molecules careening around the brain, dictating feelings like some game of neuro-billiards. Attraction also involves personal history. "Our parents have an effect on us," says Helen Fisher, evolutionary anthropologist at Rutgers University who studies human attraction. "So does the school system, television, timing, mystery." Every book ever read, and every movie ever wept through, starts charting a course toward the chosen one. The love dance "Love," that one small word, stands for a hodgepodge of feelings and drives: lust, romance, passion, attachment, commitment and contentment. Studying this brew is made harder because the pathways aren't totally distinct. Lust and romance, for example, have some overlapping biology, even though they are not the same thing. Similarly, the dance that leads, if we're lucky, to a stable commitment moves through several key steps. First comes initial attraction, the spark. If someone's going to pick one person out of the billions of opposite-sex humans out there, it's this step that starts things rolling. Next comes the wild, dizzying infatuation of romance -- a unique magic between two people who can't stop thinking about each other. The brain uses its chemical arsenal to focus our attention on one person, forsaking all others. "Everyone knows what that feels like. This is one of the great mysteries. It's the love potion No. 9, the click factor, interpersonal chemistry," says Gian Gonzaga, senior research scientist at eHarmony Labs. The passion lasts at least for a few months, two to four years tops, says relationship researcher Arthur Aron, psychologist at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. As it fades, something more stable takes over: the steady pair-bonding of what's called companionate love. It's a heartier variety, characterized by tenderness, affection and stability over the long haul. Far less is known about the brains of people celebrating their silver anniversaries or more, but researchers are beginning to recruit such couples to find out. When Kelly and Robert Iblings of Calabasas had their first face-to-face meeting after a month of corresponding online, all signs of a spark were there. Kelly, 30, recalls thinking "Wow!" Robert, 33, thought Kelly was beautiful. "I love his height," Kelly says of Robert's 6-foot-4 frame. "And those eyes. He's quite handsome. I mean, look at him. He's cute. He's hot." "She's very cute," Robert says. "And I like the way she laughs." Their brains' signals were in sync, and it was good. It probably didn't hurt that they were a little bit nervous about meeting each other. For years, scientists have known that attraction is more likely to happen when people are aroused, be it through laughter, anxiety or fear. Aron tested that theory in 1974 on the gorgeous but spine-chilling heights of the Capilano Canyon Suspension Bridge in Vancouver, British Columbia -- a 5-foot wide, 450-foot, wobbly, swaying length of wooden slats and wire cable suspended 230 feet above rocks and shallow rapids. His research team waited as unsuspecting men, between ages 18 and 35 and unaccompanied by women, crossed over. About halfway across the bridge, each man ran into an attractive young woman claiming to be doing research on beautiful places. She asked him a few questions and gave him her phone number in case he had follow-up questions. The experiment was repeated upriver on a bridge that was wide and sturdy and only 10 feet above a small rivulet. The same attractive coed met the men, brandishing the same questionnaire. The result? Men crossing the scary bridge rated the woman on the Capilano bridge more attractive. And about half the men who met her called her afterward. Only two of 16 men on the stable bridge called. Fear got their attention and aroused emotional centers in the brain. "People are more likely to feel aroused in a scary setting," Aron says. "It's pretty simple. You're feeling physiologically aroused, and it's ambiguous why. Then you see an attractive person, and you think, 'Oh, that's why.' " In a laboratory, Aron tested his arousal theory further by having people run in place for 10 minutes, and compared them with people who didn't run. Those who had exercised were more attracted to good-looking people in photographs than those who had been sedentary. Any kind of physiological arousal would probably do the trick, Aron concludes from his studies. Couples who ride roller coasters, laugh at a really funny comedian or escape a burning building together get an emotional jolt and could attribute the feeling to the attractiveness of the other. The forces of attraction are in many ways mysterious, but scientists know certain things. Studies have shown that women prefer men with symmetrical faces and that men like a certain waist-to-hip ratio in their mates. One study even found that women, when they sniffed men's T-shirts, were attracted to certain kinds of body odors. That initial spark can flash and fade. Or it can become a flame and then a fire, a rush of exhilaration, yearning, hunger and sense of complete union that scientists know as passionate love. Key to this state of seeing a person as a soul mate instead of a one-night stand is the limbic system, nestled deep within the brain between the neocortex (the region responsible for reason and intellect) and the reptilian brain (responsible for primitive instincts). Altered levels of dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin -- neurotransmitters also associated with arousal -- wield their influence. But passionate love is something far stronger than that first sizzle of chemistry. "It's a drive to win life's greatest prize, the right mating partner," Fisher says. It is also, she adds, an addiction. People in the early throes of passionate love, she says, can think of little else. They describe sleeplessness, loss of appetite, feelings of euphoria, and they're willing to take exceptional risks for the loved one. Brain areas governing reward, craving, obsession, recklessness and habit all play their part in the trickery. In an experiment published as a chapter in a 2006 book, "Evolutionary Cognitive Neuroscience," Fisher found 17 people who were in relationships for an average of seven months. She knew they were in love from their answers to what researchers call the Passionate Love Scale. They all said they'd feel deep despair if their lover left, and they yearned to know all there was to know about the loved one. She put these lovesick, enraptured people in an fMRI to see what areas of their brains got active when they saw a photograph of their beloved ones. "We found some remarkable things," she said. "We saw activity in the ventral tegmental area and other regions of the brain's reward system associated with motivation, elation and focused attention." It's the same part of the brain that presumably is active when a smoker reaches for a cigarette or when gamblers think they're going to win the lottery. No wonder it's as hard to say no to the feeling of romantic arousal as it would be to say no to a windfall in the millions. The brain has seen what it wants, and it's going to get it. "At that point, you really wouldn't notice if he had three heads," Fisher says. "Or you'd notice, but you'd choose to overlook it." Other studies also suggest that the brain in the first throes of love is much like a brain on drugs. Lucy Brown, professor of neuroscience at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, has also taken fMRI images of people in the early days of a new love. In a study reported in the July 2005, Journal of Neurophysiology, she too found key activity in the ventral tegmental area. "That's the area that's also active when a cocaine addict gets an IV injection of cocaine," Brown says. "It's not a craving. It's a high." You see someone, you click, and you're euphoric. And in response, your ventral tegmental area uses chemical messengers such as dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin to send signals racing to a part of the brain called the nucleus accumbens with the good news, telling it to start craving. "The other person becomes a goal in your life," Brown says. He or she becomes a goal you might die without and would pack up and move across the country for. That one person begins to stand out as the one and only. Biologically, the cravings and pleasure unleashed are as strong as any drug. Surely such a goal is worth taking risks for, and other alterations in the brain help ensure that the lovelorn will do just that. Certain regions, scientists have found, are being deactivated, such as within the amygdala, associated with fear. "That's why you can do such insane things when you're in love," Fisher says. "You would never otherwise dream of driving across the country in 13 hours, but for love, you would." Sooner or later, excited brain messages reach the caudate nucleus, a dopamine-rich area where unconscious habits and skills, such as the ability to ride a bike, are stored. The attraction signal turns the love object into a habit, and then an obsession. According to a 1999 study in the journal Psychological Medicine, people newly in love have serotonin levels 40% lower than normal people do -- just like people with obsessive-compulsive disorders. Experiments in other mammals add to the human chemical findings. Female prairie voles, for example, develop a distinct preference for a specific male after mating, and the preference is associated with a 50% increase in dopamine in the nucleus accumbens. But when the monogamous vole is injected with a dopamine antagonist, blocking the activity of the chemical, she'll readily dump her partner for another. Using their heads Kelly and Robert Iblings, now married for nine months, are fascinated by all this talk of nucleus accumbens, addiction and primitive mating instincts. Sure, they admit, they found each other attractive. But they were also making use of their front brains' sharp thinking skills. They were remembering painful past lessons and looking for signs of compatibility. They had each survived an earlier, failed engagement, and they knew what they were looking for this time around. They were listening to their front brains as they told them to look for compatibility, stability, shared values and commitment. From their first e-mail exchanges through eHarmony, an Internet dating service, the Iblings each felt they had found a unique mate. She liked to travel. So did he. They both love books and learning, have similar religious beliefs and come from loving, intact families. She no sooner sent an e-mail telling him about an exhibit she saw on a business trip to New York than he sent a message back telling her he knew of the exhibit because he had bought a book on it the day before. Coincidence, or soul mate? The front brain certainly gets involved as it ponders all of life's experiences and past mistakes, researchers say -- but not just the front brain. The nucleus accumbens, virtual swamp of dopamine that it is, is also holder of memories. Its quest for reward is influenced by childhood experiences, friends, previous failed engagements or the jerk who cheated on you. The sum of those experiences make some people attracted to a prince or a frog, a princess or a shrew. And, as it happens, practical matters such as whether a couple both like pi a coladas and getting caught in the rain do matter in igniting passionate love. A research project headed by eHarmony Labs' Gonzaga interviewed 1,200 dating and newlywed couples. The results, reported in the July issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, found that those who reported similar interests and feelings were more satisfied. "Those who reported chemistry said they felt at ease, relaxed, connected. They knew they had some things in common," he says. "Chemistry is more than just being hot or handsome." Clearly, in the matters of love, the stars were aligned for the Iblings. When they met, they were ready for each other. But they were also attracted to each other. The chemistry was there. Most relationship researchers think it has to be. They had what it took to kick-start the relationship with an undeniable urgency, allowing two people to give up the candy store of other choices and commit to each other. Odds are that in two to four years, this urgency will fade -- and the couple will, if all goes well, settle in for the long haul with companionate love. Such peoples' lives are entwined, as are their property and bank accounts, and they begin to answer questionnaires differently. The rush and the urgency is gone, but they feel committed, emotionally close and stable. It is the state that many desire, yet it is the least studied. There's a reason for that. Most studies of couples are of college students and young newlyweds. Brown, however, has recently recruited volunteers for a study of people 40 to 65 who have been together for many years. She'll put them in fMRIs to see where love resides after the urgency fades. "It's unknown, the extent to which these original brain motivations are still active," she says. "Or whether companionate love has turned more cortical, more conscious thinking, more evaluative." Her first volunteers had their brains scanned this month. The free fall of love's first rush can happen at any age, whether people are 20 or 70, says Elaine Hatfield, psychology professor at the University of Hawaii and relationship researcher. What differs is that the older people get, the more memories they harbor of joy and trust, rejection and disappointment. And as people learn from experience, the front brain, with its logic and reason, probably gets a greater say. "When you are young, passion and hope are so strong that's it's almost impossible to stop loving someone," Hatfield says. "After you've been kicked around by life, however, you start to have a dual response to handsome con men: 'Wow!' and 'Arrrrrrgh!' "It takes not will power but painful experience to make us wise." Somehow, it all comes together, for better or for worse, the sum total of what's found in the mating dance of the ancient reptilian brain, the passion of the limbic brain and the logic of the neocortex. Oh, what a ride. susan.brink@latimes.com
Prime Dating Sites Prime Dating Sites January 23, 2008 on 4:11 pm | In Life | Prime Dating Sites is an informative site that reviews and compares the most popular dating and matchmaking sites. These days, a dating service can range from a very casual browsing experience to a very scientific process to determine compatibility. It is hard to say which strategy is right for you. If you believe in fate, you might want to try surfing through the profiles on Lavalife . According to Prime Dating Sites, Lavalife allows users to jump in with both feet and get busy checking people out and being checked out. Smiling at each other is free, just like at McDonald s or elsewhere in real life. A smile is just an indication that you approve of someone s profile. If you want to communicate through email or instant message, you have to become a paid member. Lavalife has a huge membership, so it is quite likely that there are a number of people in your vicinity. The catch with sites that are popular and free is that it will be populated with a large proportion of jerks who will waste your time or worse. You might be better off spending your time filling out an extensive questionnaire on a site like eHarmony. The eHarmony review on Prime Dating Sites states that it is only for heterosexual single people who have marriage as a life goal. There is no way to participate in this matchmaking for free, but lots of people rave about how well the process has worked for them. There are undoubtedly fewer jerks on eHarmony.
Juneau married personals Blink club swapping swinger wife cheating wives adult personals couple.EHarmony: Marriage Minded SinglesFall In Love Compatibility bas...
Call Us A Couple of Overachievers Sunday morning, Sean and I met with our priest. Father Jhon. Yes, that's J-H-O-N. Not J-O-H-N. He's so cool. He's from Columbia and he's our age. Nicest guy. Anyway, we had to go over our test results from our Pre-Cana classes. Basically, a compatibility test. They separate you and you each respond to 200 questions on a scantron. Father Jhon said in all his years as a priest, he's never seen test results like ours. Uh oh! Actually, no "uh oh" at all. We blew the test out of the water. Black bars all the way across. 100's in almost all the areas of compatibility. Our lowest score, a 91. That was due to the one question we immediately asked each other about after the test was over. If you found out your spouse was cheating on you, would you divorce them? Sean was undecided, and I answered that initially. However, I changed it to a no. It is until death do us part, after all. That's not to say it wouldn't take a lot of counseling and him sleeping on the couch if it were to happen, but then again, you just don't know until you're in that situation. But, that's what gave us a 91. Sean asked Father if he had couples score 40's & 50's in some areas. He said he's seen zeros!!! And, there was one couple he couldn't recommend for marriage, they were that incompatible. As I told Father before we took the test, we met on eHarmony. The church's test was going to be a piece of cake...and it was. ;)
eHarmony promotional codes September 2007 ...codes September 2007 Use the Compatibility Matching System from eHarmony to find your perfect match. Also features a marriage counseling...
How to Save My Marriage How to Save My Marriage? How to save my marriage? ... assessments are used to determine compatibility. ... websites are just for losers [...]
A Hypnosis Session or a Date? Recently, one of my friends began to take an interest in my services and began to ask a lot of questions that came down to hypnosis and relationships. Ever had these conversations? My friend is a recent divorcee but has been celibate for two years. She is trying to decide if she would like to continue this way or look at other options. This is where the hypnosis comes in. She wanted to know if I would hypnotize her to stop those adult desires or the craving for a relationship. I truly suspect she rdoes not want hypnosis, but an opportunity to meet single men who might stimulate her both mentally and physically might be a better course. So we have become acquainted with primedatingsites.com. It is a site that reviews, compares and contrast various dating sites. In the dating world, apparently the different dating and match making sites are all a little different and one may be better for one's needs than another. For instance of one is looking for the ideal marriage partner (my friend is not), their review of eHarmony cites that this would be a great resource. Then there is Lavalife , which could be similar, but also features options for those just looking for intimate encounters (a little too far the other way for my friend). Dating has gotten so complicated. I am just waiting for the one that offer genetic testing for compatibility. So, she is now emailing me about this guy or that, though she says she has not finished bugging me about hypnosis as a potential fix. LOL.
Comment on Complete list of canned 2nd questions in eHarmony by... From eharmony questions on 24 Apr 2008 at 7:06 pm [...] and our related article: The Marriage Test for other questions that determine deep compatibility http://www.pinoy.ca/eharmony/102eHarmony Ask a Dating Expert Advice - What are questions I can ask on what are some questions i [...]
Custom List: M M Name Web address Description Two Becoming One http://www.2becoming1.com/devotionals Unique site made just for married couples.We have led numerous classes and continue to find couples blessed mightily through this study. Among the results are couples enjoying finding the depth of what God meant when He said "the two shall become one."" Sacred Marriage Covenant http://assemblyoftrueisrael.com/Formsandagreements/MarriageCovenant.html NOTE: This Marriage Covenant (Contract) is designed to eliminate the need for a "Third Party" (the State) from the Marriage Covenant. Because Marriage is a Religious exercise, No license is required, nor should a license (permission) be requested. Marriage Salt Covenant http://www.marriagesaltcovenant.com/FAQ.html A Marriage Salt Covenant does the same thing by asking the bride and groom to combine their grains of salt. Their commitment to each other can not be broken unless they can each retrieve their own grains of salt. Weekend to Remember http://www.familylife.com/conferences/default.asp marriage conference that teaches God's design for marriage and family. The environment is fun, non-threatening, and sometimes hilarious. And it's a wonderful time for couples to refresh good marriages or heal troubled ones Family Life http://www.familylife.com/ 1-800-FL-TODAY Christian Marriage Counseling http://www.nationalmarriage.com/marriage_counseling.asp All of our programs are Christian-based I Promise marriage seminar by Dr. Gary Smalley http://www.smalleyonline.com/conferences/ After 10 years of research this book will help you to develop a marriage where you both have the freedom to be open & secure without fear of being criticized, blamed or judged by each other. A safe place where your relationship grows deeper naturally. Rekindling the Flame http://www.settingcaptivesfree.com/Local_Counseling_Ministry/index.php Free Intensive Biblical Counseling Weekends for Married Couples held in West Bend, Iowa. "SCF"will pay for all costs involved (except transportation) to qualified participants. For couples having experienced the ravages of sexual impurity in their marriage Toward a Growing Marriage Seminar http://www.moodyconferences.com/default.asp?SectionID=3BAD6CB5DEE14C5FB53582DF7DCF88AE For alternative dates to the Seminar try this link as well.. Toward a Growing Marriage Seminar http://www.garychapman.org/calendar.htm#schedule Gary Chapman's Toward a Growing Marriage Seminar is a powerful investment in your marriage. The sessions are filled with lots of humor and practical insight on sound biblical marriage. Marriage Issues Today http://www.churchoftheholyword.faithweb.com/marriage.htm Table of Contents: (1) Common Law Marriage by Dave Champion.(2) Should "Marriage" Even Be Defined in Secular Law? by Pastor Matt Trewhella. (3) Should "Marriage" Even Be Defined in Secular Law? by Virgil Cooper. (4) Holy Matrimony v. Marriage 5 Reasons http://www.mercyseat.net/BROCHURES/marriagelicense.htm Why Christians Should Not Obtain a State Marriage License eHarmony http://www.eharmony.com/singles/servlet/registration?cid=48&aid=1002 eHarmony matches you based on compatibility in the most important areas of life - like values, character, intellect, sense of humor, spiritual beliefs, passion, and up to 24 other dimensions First Things First http://www.firstthings.org/ The Marriage and Family Resource Center Focus on the Family http://www.family.org/ Since Focus on the Family's primary reason for existence is to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ through a practical outreach to homes, we have firm beliefs about both the Christian faith and the importance of the family. The Flag Page http://www.flagpage.com/ When you learn what truly makes your spouse tick, you will discover the key to successfully living with him/her. .The Flag Page is an effective way to get your spouse to tell you how they feel all without them saying a word! The Marriage Hope Line http://www.laughyourway.com/ 88% Success Rate In Stopping A Divorce In 4 Weeks 866-525-2844 Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage Seminar http://www.laughyourway.com/ explores the differences between men and women or what he calls, "The Laws of Relational Physics"
Effective Communication Skills are paramount for harmonious... Effective Communication Skills are paramount for harmonious relationships The faces of relationships have changed much over the past fifty years. The odds of dating and marrying the high school sweetheart are not probable. For the first time in history people are placing higher values on careers than they are dating. The world is seeing a trend for older couples and marrying later on in lives. Ten years ago there was a stigma attached to internet dating. It was generally thought of as something people did for "hook ups" or were for "losers" who could not get a date in real life. Nothing could possibly be further from the truth. Internet dating was and still is a great way for developing relationships. Developing relationships takes time and work. Single parents, people concentrating on their career or individuals seeking specific qualities in a mate often find them on the losing end of the relationship game if they limit themselves to people who they would normally interact with. The advent of the Internet gave people a way to communicate without the pressures of small talk and idle chit chat. One particular website devoted to love, dating and marriage is Eharmony. They take the idea of compatibility and match people based on a series of questions the individual answers. This approach to developing relationships is on the premise that searching through endless personal ads is often a fruitless endeavor due to discovering that the other person is not compatible. Regardless of the methods used, it really comes down to what is right for each individual person. Even if the initial contact and meeting is online or at the grocery store, it takes time and effort for developing relationships that can last. It takes a commitment to understand how love and dating works. The best advice any seasoned dater can give a single guy or gal is to take time. The method of developing relationships has not changed much in the history of mankind. There has to be a certain level of trust, understanding and a basic compatibility. If a person cannot talk to their partner or love interest, then chances are that the relationship is doomed from the start. One of the biggest issues a person can face when dating is having the ability to say "No" if there is no chance the relationship will work out. Often a person finds themselves dating a guy or girl just because they could not end it for fear of hurting the other person or fear of being alone. Developing relationships that can last takes work and can sometimes be a painful process. It does not have to be. Love is one half intellectual and the other emotional. When combined it gives an level playing field where two people can find something they truly want.
"The Love Doctor" [Online Personals Watch] EHARMONY BLOG -- Apr 20 -- The February 2008 issue of Reader's Digest ran an article about eHarmony and its founder, Neil Clark Warren and his dream to beat the 'horrors of divorce'. From the article: Q: What exactly do single people want? Dr: They are dying for a deep sense of companionship and to feel really good about themselves. Q: What's the one essential quality to a successful relationship that most people overlook? Dr: Honesty. Q: What's the most important of your 29 criteria for compatibility? Dr: Emotional health. Q: Do opposites attract? Dr: I believe in the importance of similarities. The truth is, opposites attract, then they attack. FULL ARTICLE @ EHARMONY BLOG
...