We are the Mabry's!
Welcome to One Another Marriage’s blog! We want to start out by introducing ourselves and answering the questions, “What the heck is One Another Marriage?” and “Why would I want to check this out every week?”
First of all, we are Dr. David and Theresa Mabry. We’ve been married since 1993 and have three beautiful kids. Our son, Alex, is married to Katy, and they have a beautiful daughter named Sedona (our first grandchild!). Our daughter, Taylor, graduated from Barclay College and is a youth pastor here in Ohio. Gabe is our youngest son, and he married his wonderful wife, Mackenzie, in 2020 during the early days of COVID.
We have worked with families and couples for many years. Including when David was a part of Encompass Connection Center in Springfield, Ohio. (A quick shout-out to ECC: if you’re ready to jump into some great marriage resources, be sure to check out their Rings Experience, which we highly recommend.) In working with families and teens, it was here that we saw the hurts and difficulties that often resulted from the lack of a strong marriage in the household.
Our passion for marriages grew during this time, so in 2008, we created One Another Marriage. The goal of our work is to strengthen marriages and relationships so they can have greater fulfillment, as well as a greater impact on the world. That may sound like a lofty goal, but we don’t believe it is. We have seen first-hand the positive difference a strong marriage can make to everyone it comes into contact with: children, friends, coworkers, and anyone who’s looking!
We spend our time speaking, teaching, leading seminars and couples retreats, training other leaders (pastors, counselors, social workers, etc.) to strengthen marriages within their organizations, and coaching couples of all ages and stages. The primary program we use in our coaching is Prepare/Enrich, which we feel equips couples with great tools to build, strengthen, and grow their marriages.
To wrap up our first blog, we want to share some of the top lessons we’ve learned in our three decades of marriage. We will elaborate on these in future blogs, but to get the ball rolling:
It doesn’t matter who is right. You are in this together, so if just one person is winning, you’re both losing.
Respect the perspective of your partner. You don’t have to agree with their point of view, but you should respect it.
Pull the best out of one another each day. Support and encouragement are essential.
Compatibility comes naturally to some couples; some couples need to work harder. But remember, selfishness is the enemy of compatibility.
Have fun together! Marriage shouldn’t be a serious business all the time. Laugh with, and even at, one another - but in a kind way. Don’t take yourselves too seriously! If there’s anywhere you should be free to be completely yourself, it’s with your spouse.
We like to wrap up each week with a verse, so this week's verse is Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."
We look forward to sharing more with you and hearing your feedback, so let us know what you’re thinking!