As a Christian, how do I sort out the difference between my obligation to family on the one hand and to the work of the gospel on the other? And what’s my responsibility to my extended family as compared with my obligation to my immediate, nuclear family? Is there any distinction between the two? My …
Relationships & Marriage Q&As
How can my spouse and I resolve our disagreement about starting a family? I’m anxious to be a mother, but he says he isn’t ready to have children yet. My biological clock is ticking away, and the tension between us is growing. What should I do?
Are repeated emotional affairs biblical grounds for divorce? On several occasions my husband has become emotionally involved with other women in ways that have been seriously destructive to our marriage. The most recent incident involved a lady with whom he’d been emotionally intimate in the past. I’m tired of his betrayals, and though we’ve been …
What is Focus on the Family’s position on divorce and remarriage?
What can I do about a husband who won’t get a job?
How does a man stay sexually interested in his wife after years and years of marriage? Jesus said that anyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:28), but this strikes me as being terribly unrealistic. In my experience, sexual attraction has always been closely …
How can I prevent my struggles with depression and anxiety from having a negative impact on my wife and children? It’s bad enough having to cope with these debilitating feelings, but the thought that I’m making life difficult for my family is almost too much to bear. What should I do?
Is it our responsibility to cover the expenses for our adult daughter’s wedding when she and her husband-to-be have good, professional jobs and earn more than we do? They expect us to do so even though we have limited financial resources after putting our children through college. Do you think this is right? We feel …
What can we do to get ready for the departure of our youngest child? He’ll be going off to college after the end of this year, and my spouse and I will be left “on our own” as empty nesters. I’ve heard that many couples in our position face serious adjustments and are at risk …
What’s the best way to handle the revelation of an affair when one guilty spouse has come clean or been exposed, but the husband or wife of the other unfaithful party is still in the dark?
What’s the difference between obsessive-compulsive disorder and obsessive-compulsive personality disorder?
How do I mediate problems between my son and his stepfather? I remarried about four years ago and everything seemed to be going well until recently. The trouble seems to have begun about the time my son reached puberty and became interested in girls. Since then, the conflict has developed into open hostility. There have …
How should I respond to my husband’s repeated infidelities and his blatant request to date other women?
How can I make my husband understand that I don’t want to have intercourse as often as he does?
Should I tell my husband about the one-time sexual encounter I had with his brother? It happened over a year ago in a moment of weakness. Both of us immediately acknowledged that this was wrong and nothing further has happened since. Our families see each other regularly and are very close. Neither of us has …
Is it okay to be romantically involved with a guy who doesn’t share my Christian faith? He asked me out on a date six months ago, and though at the time I didn’t think it was a good idea, I went ahead and accepted. Now he’s captured my heart and I don’t know what to …
How can I convince my husband that budgeting is important? I’m a firm believer in this method of money management, but my husband doesn’t think it will work in our situation. How do we resolve this disagreement?
Should my husband and I discontinue our friendship with another couple simply because the man and I became involved in an emotional affair? It’s over now, and my spouse and the man’s wife have taken a firm but conciliatory attitude towards the whole thing. For obvious reasons, we’ve also suspended our normal get-togethers for the …
How often should a married couple have sex? I’m frustrated because my wife would probably be content to make love once a month – but that doesn’t come close to satisfying me.
Should I go ahead with my plans to get married after learning that I’m a carrier of a serious genetic disease? The doctor just told me about this, and my husband-to-be is still unaware. Is this something we need to take into consideration before going forward? If so, what’s the best way to raise the …
