STORIES
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1/14/2009
I went to see "Fireprooof" the weekend it came out. In the beginning of October 2008 my sister told me that she was not in love with her husband anymore. She made it through the holidays together and brought it up again this past weekend. She says that they have grown apart. She got married right out of high school, and was pregnant within a year. Now they have an 8 year old son...who is honestly a blessing. My sister is dealing with some issues that her husband has hurt her in the past. She is trouble forgetting them. She says that they have grown apart...and she is just basically tired of being married. She says she can't say she loves him to his face without forcing it. It breaks my heart for her. They have been married 9 years. First of all, help me pray that Jesus is first in each of their lives...without Him in the center...it will never work. Then pray for their reconcilation, open communication to hear one another, for a deeper God given passion for one another and to be married. I pray Satan to not enter their home. I am hoping that they might rent Fireproof when it comes this month. I have bought The Love Dare book. Please pray for Jennifer and Jasten. Thank you.
1/11/2009
My husband and I have been married 28 years. In the past 6 years we have grown further and further apart. We had parenting differences when our youngest was in High School and acted out and disobeyed house rules, curfews, etc. I believed in discipline and consequences for disrespectful behavior and my husband ignored our son's behavior and just said that's what teen boys are like. We were on 2 different pages when it came to reinforcing the house rules and disciplining our son. This put a wedge between my husband and me which has only grown larger.
My respect for my husband decreased because I saw a man who could not make decisions and work as a team member. My respect also decreased because he would constantly lie to me about financial and other issues in his life and I grew to not trust him and not know when I could trust him.
My husband began counseling 2 years ago but there has been little consistent change. He reads books, listens to tapes and even went to see Fireproof the Movie with me but to little avail. I never know when I am going to get lied to again or when I can trust his word since his actions never seem to go hand in hand with his words. This past August he made a financial decision by himself which has affected our whole family in a negative way and yet he did this by himself. When he finally told me about it, he called himself a "fraud". I am having a very difficult time loving a man who calls himself a fraud, is not true to himself or me and continues to walk in the same path he has always walked. I am bitter, resentful and angry and I really don't want to spend much time with him.
I am trying to work through the 40 day dare and so far it has shown me what I need to do about my attitudes and feelings. I pray that God will use this dare and the movie to show us both what real love is.
1/9/2009
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1/8/2009
January 8, 2009
My Husband and I have been married for 18 years and I thought everything was going like a marriage should be. We have had our fights and threats of leaving, but we have always "worked things out." I have become to comfortable and I have taken our marriage for granted. My husband and I are both christians, but I guess we have never made God the center of our lives, where he needs to be. I have recently found out that my husband has cheated on me and he has taken God out of his life and put his focus on different things. We saw the movie "Fireproof" back in October and we both just viewed it as a movie. I now know how powerful the movie was and I praise God in this storm of our marriage. I love my husband and I'm going to buy the Love Dare book this weekend and I'm commiting the next 40 days to our marriage and this dare. If you read this story please pray for us, as I will be praying for your marriages.
Christina
1/3/2009
My story began back in the 1900's when I met my then boyfriend, who is now my ex husband. He started off cheating on me from the beginning, only I didnt know it. My intuition repeatedly told me that he was lying to me. I ignored all signs. I was weak and vulnerable and falling in love. For years he continued to lie & cheat. I thought I had forgiven him, but never did I forget. Eventually, I started to cheat on him. It was a vicious cycle. Finally, I decided that I no longer wanted to live that way, and that I was moving out of state. He begged me not to go without him. We resolved some things and moved in August 1998. In the year 2000, we were married. We went back to our home town where we had a huge wedding with all of our family & friends from all over to fly in to celebrate with us. We divorced in 2004.
He became more distant and demeaning than ever before. I couldnt prove that he was cheating, and I wasnt sticking around to find out. For years, I had been drinking and drugging out of control which resulted in me hurting him with my words and actions, along with infidelity on both of our parts. We went to counseling prior to our divorce and the counselor commended us for trying. Neither of us had positive examples of what a marriage was suppose to be like. WE were in pain from our childhoods including our previous and current relationship. That was no excuse, though. Our relationship/marriage was toxic. Then, I became pregnant. He was even more distant and cold. The pregnancy was difficult and I felt so alone. There was no way I could go thru another single parent nightmare. You see, I had already had one child that was not his, that he had helped me care for, off & on. Initially, when we found out we were pregnant, we were estatic! Then, slowly, it turned into a nightmare and a mistake. We never talked about anything, including our baby.
I cant even remember what started all of it this time around. I was afraid he was going to leave me with another child I'd have to raise alone with another bitter.angry father to make our life hell. I had already endured that with my sons father, and my husband new it. I had expressed to him, how I felt about the possibility of that problem arising and how much I could never go thru it again. I became increasingly sick as the days passed. He seldom asked about how "we" felt. We were roomates again, under the pretense of marriage. I had an abortion. That was the most painful time in my life, and his. My son was acting out, and he (we) were living in a house of hell, confusion and turmoil. I could not bring another child into this again. I had already been thru that once, with my sons father who continued to fight me for custody his entire life solely bc I left him. My husband knew that. Yet, he never tried to salvage our marriage by communicating with me nor inquiring about our pregnancy or anything else for that matter. So, how would I know that he wouldnt do the same thing that the other father did?
Four years ago, I cried out to God to take away my taste for drugs & alcohol. I have been clean ever since with His grace & mercy. We have since gone back & forth since we divorced. My ex husband knows that I had an abortion. We have never actually discussed it. He says, whatever I did happened bc of what he did to me. Part of that is true, but it makes no difference now. It's too late. We love each other very much, but I am not sure if we can get back together. We are no longer in love, and we had not been in love for quite some time. I dont want what we had. It was a lie. It's like we cant leave each other, but we cant be together. He called me on New Year's Eve nite and left me a message saying how much he loves me and wants me to have his last name again. By law, I still do. He also left my son a message saying he loved him like a son. I have asked God for forgiveness for all that I have done. It is not all my ex's fault. I am no saint. I found out about Fireproof two months ago. I finally made it a priority to go see it. Coincidentally, it was New Years day, the day after my ex and I spoke candidly about why he wont communicate with me...he found a diary of mine where I had confessed my love for another man since our divorce. Per him, that makes it hard for him to open up to me, show any affection or love, other than monetarily. I am determined to give it 100%, and see if in 40 days, my ex husband and I can learn to love each other again. If not, I pray that God severs our ties.
1/2/2009
My wife and I separated in August. We have been married for 16 years and have 3 wonderful sons (13, 10, 6). For the most part, I thought we had a good marriage. We had our disagreements, and we had our fun times.
When she told me she wanted a divorce, I was devastated. I could not think straight. All I knew is I did not want this to happen. I immediately began counseling. And at the request of my counselor, began a book study of "Wild at Heart" by John Eldredge. This book helped me see that, first I needed to restore my relationship with God. Second, I needed to seek God''s will for my life, marriage, and family. And finally, through prayer and God''s perfect timing, I was lead to battle for my marriage, not through mans methods of wooing my bride back to me, but through God''s method of loving and serving my bride and family.
During the Christmas break, my wife and children went to her parent''s home. The fifteen days of only speaking to my children on the phone, provided me the time I needed to think, pray and listen to God. Several times, I found myself crying to sleep. Wondering how I was going to make it through another day. Then Christmas Eve came, I sing in our church choir so, out of "duty" I went to church. It was the sermons on Christmas Eve and the Sunday after Christmas that helped restore my hope. Through this new found hope and some outside encouragement from my mom and some friends, I went to see "Fireproof".
The movie was exactly what I expected it to be. I did not see anything on the screen that, I am not suffering from. I am a work-a-holic. I want my things; mostly at the expense of those around me. And I demand respect that is not duly deserved. I did not see my wife in the character of Catherine, but upon reflection, it was not about her. I was supposed to see the movie, for ME.
Following the movie, I came home and immediately logged onto the related websites and upon reading the sample chapter of "The Love Dare", I ordered the book and committed the first 40 days of 2009 to devote to undertaking the Love Dare.
Over the week that followed that decision, I spent in pray and reflection asking God to give me the courage and fortitude to follow through with the 40 days. To have the courage to share each day with others. And to sacrifice of myself for my family.
The Journey began January 1, 2009
12/28/2008
12/29/08
My husband and I saw the movie last night at the encouragement of one of his AA friends. We have been Married for 20+ hard, painful years where neither of us have been happy. On our 20 year anniversary in July, we decided to get a divorce.
On Christmas Eve we went in for a couple counselling session in which it was suggested that we do a theraputic seperation. I love him - always have - and want to either improve our marriage or end it. I no longer have the strength to co-exist. My husband - he feels trapped and indecisive. He doesn't know if he has ever loved me or ever will.
God must be working within us as many things stand in the way of either of us following thru with the divorce. We continue to attend church, live together and share in raising the children but our relationship is unsatisfying for neither of us.
I enjoyed the movie and loved the message. I felt hopeful about it and the counselling session as I am ready for change. My husband doesn't share my hope and we still are unable to communicate.
I am going to purchase the book and use it for myself and let God take care of the rest.Please pray for us.
12/28/2008
My husband and I have been together for 4 years and married for 2 years. There is a lot of excess baggage and issues that we both brought into our marriage. I have had some issues with how to love him and how to hold bak my tongue.
My husband told me a little more than a week ago that he wanted a divorce, after I had threatened to call his friend when he wasn't coming home. I got the reaction that I wanted, but it was not worth all that we are going through now.
I have started the Love Dare, and I am also reading a book called, "The Power of a Praying Wife." Together, these two books have changed my outlook on life, and I am hoping they will change our marriage with God as our provider.
I see myself being calm in the midst of the fire, and I see that my husband still cares, but he is hard hearted and still refuses to "give in" because he does not think that the change is for good.
I am hoping that God and the books will help our marriage so that we do not have to go through the divorce that he wants. I love him and want nothing more than our life together back, with the strong force of God as our witness.
Please pray for us as I will pray for all of you in your journey to a wonderful marriage.
12/23/2008
Our 2nd marriage. Five years soon. 50 years of marriage betweens us. I hate the second because of the way the first ended after 20 years I guess. There has to be some reason this marriage seems so bad some days and that is as good as any reason I guess. I miss the family I had and hate the new blended family I have now. Hate is the wrong word. I'm just saying I really don't like current status. There is a emptiness and I'm blaming it on something that I can't see or touch. Maybe I blame God.
My wife loves to give everyone a book for Christmas. I told her I did not want a book this year, it was a waste of money. We were at the Lifeway bookstore on Saturday. I saw the book 40 day love dare for maybe 10 seconds. I had never heard of it before, never heard of the movie before. I just knew by the title that I needed something or this 2nd marriage is going to go down in flames. I told my wife, “I want this book for Christmas". She bought it on the spot. Plus it was not as thick as the Bible I was buying for my mom. (I know that book has the answers - I figure 40 days will have some distilled answers).
I sit in restaurants and see families and want to go over and tell them to not take for granted what they have. So I'm taking my own advice... That book is down there under the tree and I'm hoping there will be some insight that will help me figure out how to fill this emptiness. I know God has blessed me with a "Good Wife" this time.
I hate it when I dare God. He always wins. Pray for me and pray for her. Just looking at the movie trailer tonight brought tears to me eyes .
I'll submit a follow up story in about 40 days.
Story Reference#0115011505
12/20/2008
I believe that the movie Fireproof helped to save my marriage.
My wife told me she wanted a divorce, and that there was no changing her mind.
I was shocked this hit me out of nowhere. We had not been fighting that day but I guess it had been building up for a while.
It was the hardest thing I have ever gone through.
At first my wife wanted me out ASAP I could not understand why this was, she was not being very flexible at the time.
She was being cold and harsh to me in so many ways ( or at least it seemed that way to me ).
I decided to do a little digging and I found out that she had been talking to someone that she met up with at her previous high school reunion.
It became so clear to me; she had a new love interest.
Although she had not cheated on me sexually, she was sharing her emotions and love interest with another man.
I was shocked! At this point I had to do a lot of soul searching and praying to try to figure out what went wrong.
It did not take long for me to realize that I had driven her away! It was 90% my fault.
To make a long story short her love interest connection fell apart and she agreed to let me stay in the house for a little bit while we got our finances in order.
My wife and I saw the movie Fireproof in October, and I believe it changed the direction of our marriage.
Before I saw the move and started the love dare I had already started working on winning trying to win back my wife, but the move and book gave me new hope.
While we were watching the movie I looked at my wife and say her crying several times. I could see that
it really hit home in so many ways.
Really we could play the parts in the movie hands down!
We talked about the movie briefly and then she changed the subject.
Later in the week I asked her if she would like to see the movie again. To my surprise she said yes she would.
But this time she wanted to see it with another couple.
So we did. Again during the movie she cried several times ( as did I ).
I started the love dare as soon as my book came, and it has changed my life and our marriage.
It took me 5 months to win back my wife's love, and it was worth every effort.
Even if you’re someone who does not believe in GOD or religion ( but I do ) the information in the book just makes so much sense. It will teach you how to be a better person and a better spouse. I know I am and I will strive to continue to be until I die.
Thanks so much for the movie and the book!
12/14/2008
My husband and I have been married for 3 years and 6 months. He recently hurt me really bad to the point where currently, trust is an issue. And I even considered leaving him. Well we went to see that movie and it taught me to love him unconditionally. That we are all going to make mistakes. And that God forgives us for our mistakes, we should be forgiving our spouse for their mistakes. And yes, my marriage is definetly worth fighting for. So thank you for the movie Fireproof! There really needs to be more movies out there like that. God bless : )
12/14/2008
12/12/08
We recently saw the movie, and we both were so glad we did, as we do have some issues to be worked on between us. We have been married going on 15 years, and for several years Alcholism has been a problem between us, he being the alcoholic, me being the non drinking spouse. He is such an awesome man, my grown children love him dearly as do our six grandchildren, all being mine biologically but he is their father/grandfather in every sense of the word. He has brought so much to our lives, but the drinking has really made me bitter, and unsure numerous times if I wanted to continue my marriage. I joined Al-Anon last summer, but it's stilll a struggle at times, as he can go for 4-5 months without a drink and for no reason drink to the point of being drunk,not falling down as he has in the past, but its really changed my feelings towards him. Joining Al-anon really helped me but the past 2 months has been hard as he seems to be having a beer more often, nearly every weekend,not to the point of being drunk but just having it around is very very hard, So I have continued to pray to our wonderful Lord, and Savior. It so happened my best friend told me of the movie a few weeks ago, and we finally saw it last week. What an eye opener--to love unconditionally is purely what our Lord wants us to do but before we saw the movie, I was on the verge of thinking this was our last Christmas together when BAM we saw fireproof-=- my humble thanks to Kirk Cameron and the rest of the crew who did this movie, as we both said per the movies end, that the theatre should've been packed!!! We have to also do our part to get the word out about this wonderful Christian movie--Thank you again, as we now have the Love Dare journal and will buy the book when its out.
Jan
12/12/2008
My husband and I went to see the movie 12/10/08 he took me for my birthday which was 11/10 but we could not get a sitter till a month later. I really enjoyed it but please pray for my husband. He missed the whole point of the movie. He said on the way out of the theater if only the women submits then the marriage will make it. I learned a lot and God showed me to continue loving him unconditionally. Thank you for this movie God Bless. L.
12/11/2008
My fiancé and I have been engaged and are getting married on the 10th of January, but for the past couple of months we began running into severe complications. I found out he was hiding some things from me, and those things hurt me very severely and very deeply….A little more than a month ago I moved from Broken Bow, my home, to Stilwell(3hours away) his home and moved in with his parents until we got married….I am hoping that having me around will end it forever. I have yet to see fireproof. But he and I have been running into different complications since and decided to do the love dare before we get married. It’s painful but we love each other and it's helping us to eliminate those problems before we get married and have to deal with them the hard way. We're hoping this will make our marriage a strong one from the very beginning, when we'll need it most. It's giving us a good foundation to start with and I'm sure when it's over I'll have let go of all the baggage of my past and he'll have learned that relationships thrive on compromise, balance, and understanding, rather than selfishness, rudeness, spitefulness and excuses. We've both got our problems to work through but humans aren't perfect. We appreciate them for their perfections but it's the imperfections we fall in love with. I can honestly say I love him unconditionally, it's been tested and i'm sure it will only get more difficult, but if this book can teach us how to love properly, we can survive it all.
Please pray for Jack and Amber to remember to love when we feel like giving up.
Wish us luck in our married future.
I love you all and for all the couples and people just doing the dare to help them as Christians I wish you the best of luck, may God guide your journey and be with you in all things.
12/10/2008
My husband and I met when we were fifteen years old. We've been together for twenty eight years, married for twenty five of those years. We have four children two boys and two girls and a one grandchild as a result of that. Our marriage in the beginning was a struggle. Jesus Christ needs to be in the center of every relationship. He is what helped my husband and I get through those tough times. When we sought a relationship with Him each passing day as time went on our marriage grew stronger and stronger. Our love we have for each other is blessed through Jesus Christ more and more each day. Those of you struggling in your marriage Keep the faith don't give up or don't give in to the devil, if you have love for your spouse than fight to keep that love in your life always. Remember love coquers all! God will see you through.
My husband and I went to see the movie Fireproof and as when I watched Facing The Giants I cried through the whole movie. I pray that the showing of christian movies in theaters doesn't stop at this one. I really hope there are more movies like this in the making. I recommended this movie to all my friends and family.
Virginia
12/8/2008
My husband and I were married on October 4, 1997. Right after, we went through a rough spell due to surgeries/illnesses for the both of us. He eventually became diagnosed with melanoma cancer and we struggled greatly financially. We almost lost everything. Things got better but somewhere along the way we fell apart. I know I am not perfect and that I have issues, but so does he. We were separated this May through September. He is my best friend. At the time, I lost my only friend.
I was alone one night and I saw the previews for Fireproof. I couldn't wait to go see this movie. I knew that if anything could help bring us back together that this movie would be a big start. We watched the movie opening weekend. I cried. I couldn't think of anything but where we were in our marriage. I wondered where I could get this 40 day book the husband used in the movie. I thought if it worked for him, maybe it will work for me. The people in the movie were us.
The minute I got home I went online to fireprroofmymarriage.com and I found The Love Dare. I received it this past Monday and read the entire book. I kept it out to see if my husband would pick it up and look at it. I was surprised to see that he did and decided to write him a letter. I am challenging him to the 40 day love dare. I am hoping this works. I am intending to start this first thing tomorrow.
So far since we watched the movie I can already tell a difference…
I will keep you guys posted but in the meantime, keep us in your prayers.
12/8/2008
My husband and I went to see this movie for our 10th anniversary. We got married young, I was 16 he was 19. We married to get out of our circumstances at home. We had no love or respect for each other.
We have 3 wonderful children ages 4,6,8. We have put them through hell. We battled alcolholism and drug addiction. About 20 months ago we hit rock bottom. Our marriage turned into violence. October 2007 we started going to church. Although we dedicated our lives to the Lord we still faught and hated each other.
January 2008 I made the commitment to never touch a beer bottle or any other alcohol again. My husband followed. We went to a marriage conference in Febuary to try to make our marriage work. Well it was the most awkward thing we ever did.
Months past and I am extremely happy to say that the Lord has healed our marriage. We love and respect each other more than ever. I have never felt so loved and respected in my life. I came from a horrible backround. Well, we both did.
We renewed our vows December 4th our 10th year anniversary. We cryed and many people say it was beautiful and the presence of the Lord was there.
We saw Fireproof and my husband and I just got done doing what that movie showed. But the situation was MUCH worse.
We are doing the love dare now and next we will do the 6 week study.
THANK YOU FOR THE MOVIE!!!!! I will buy this movie and love dare for my mom and stepdad. and anyone else who needs healing in there marriage.
DO NOT FORGET TO PUT THE LORD FIRST ALWAYS IN EVERYTHING YOU DO!!!!!!!!!!
NOHEMY
12/5/2008
My husband and I are a newly wedded couple. We celebrated our first year of marriage this year, May 13, 2008! We had our baby girl, now 9 months this year on March 4, 2008. My husband and I met at Bible school in 2006 and married last year. We had our baby right away! Praise the L-rd. We feel we have a strong marriage, but we know there's a lot of room for growth! We watched Fireproof tonight and both had tears streaming down our faces. I could feel what he was feeling... let's do the Love Dare, let's Fireproof our marriage! We may be strong Christians and have started off right but the enemy has tried and will try to come in to devour and divide. I'm so thankful for this ministry from the movie that has blessed us and I'm sure many other newly and older married couples. Already I have heard things from the L-rd of what I can do tomorrow to show my love and appreciation for my husband. One other thing when I got pregnant my wedding ring no longer fit my finger so I wore it around my neck. It now sits in the dresser drawer because my fingers are not tiny anymore :(. We thought about buying me a cheap ring and renewing our vows with it... but tonight we both got the confirmation to pray the L-rd will bless us with the finances to pay it off and get it resized so that I can wear the ring we made a convenant with. We're not in the best shape financially... that is a big obstacle too. If you read this would you say a prayer for us? We want our marriage to last until death due us apart. Thank you to all who went transparent and shared your stories. They've blessed me and I'm praying for you. Jesus bless you & your beloved spouse.
-L. Jerdon-
12/2/2008
I want to share this in hope of helping someone else who may be in the same shape i am in. my wife and I met and dated for two years before we married on june 3rd 2006. It was a beautifull wedding. Like alot of second marriages we had baggage that seemed to dominate our ability to trust one another.As a man I have never understood the biblical principles about being the spiritual leader of my home and so I have I have always passed the buck on blame. My wife and I have been separated for 1 year this month,we have been back and forth ,but some how we have not divorced yet.We saw the movie "fireproof" on the opening weekend ,my thought throughout the movie was " oh sure it`s all the mans responsability to change!"I was mad at the movie , "they should show that the wife has a part as well " were my thoughts. I think I have come to see that yes the wife has a part but the man should lead by example ,and I have not done so.Today ,as of now, my wife is not speaking to me as I left her to move our house by herself after she sold it last weekend.I got mad and told her "goodluck do it on your own".I don`t know if I can save my marriage ,but I am here today to start a journy in hopes that I can.please pray for my wife and me ,god bless ,scott
scott
12/1/2008
Well here is my story. My husband and I have been together for 5 years, married 3 and in all that, we have brought our outside baggage into our relationship thus causing an avalanche today. It’s like, we both our so miserable and drained that we don’t know what to do anymore. Our home has been pretty much a war zone and nobody even believes this marriage can work either.
Well, we were separated when we watched the movie” Fire proof”. Funny thing is, we didn’t know much about the movie nor did we think the content would be strong. As we were watching it, all I could do was cry. I wanted so bad to cry harder. I had this groan in me that wanted to come out but it just couldn’t as long as he was near me. The movie depicted our marriage however worse. So each night he was gone, I would put the kids to bed and then pray and cry and well the “www.fireproofyourmarriage.com’ would keep popping up in my mind but I’d push it away. I thought that is was not going to help whatever it was offering. Every time he came around, I was so angry at him. I didn’t want his help, didn’t want to see him or anything. I felt like I just wanted to move on esp. after knowing how he spent his time away from me. Then one week into our separation and after the anger subsided, the website came back in my mind and I thought...Oh what the heck, I’ll see. When I watched the trailer again, I cried. I knew I wanted to try it. I didn’t know what to expect but I’ll try it. I called him at work and asked if he wanted to try with me and he cried as well and asked me to look in my email. I looked and saw a receipt of an order he placed of the Love Dare book and was planning to do it as well. That was enough confirmation for me. So he came home and for 8 days, it was a haven for me.
Sad to say, it has been a roller coaster ride for us both and we still continue to press on with this Love Dare and pray with all my heart that we will find love in one another again. That we will have a desire to hold on and cherish one another. So we shall see. This is my story.
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