Newly Marrieds Group

AUTHOR: KATHY ROBINSON, LEADER & ELDER’S WIFE

In 2016, the Lord put on our hearts the need and desire to minister to those entering marriage. We weren’t sure what that was to look like, so we continued serving in other areas as the Lord organically helped us foster relationships with young couples entering this season of life. In 2018, we began our first group with 12 couples and a co-leader couple. Over the years, the Lord has allowed us to partner with nearly 40 couples.

Currently, we meet at our home bi-weekly on Sundays after second service where we provide lunch and then engage in one of several marriage series that we go through in a two-year period. Our focus in this marriage ministry is primarily meeting with engaged and newly married couples but our door is also open to those married a bit longer who are looking for extra support in their marriage. Some of the things we learn and discuss in our small group is the role of husband and wife, conflict resolution, and what God’s plan for marriage looks like, which greatly contrasts with what the world is teaching. We learn that it requires work to have a good marriage. That work looks like growing in the Lord as a couple as well as individually, making time for fun (having weekly date nights and spending time with couples with common interests), keeping a short account of wrongs, learning to forgive each other as well as learning to appreciate and showing gratitude for your spouse. It’s important to remember that when we marry it’s not “happily ever after” without continually pursuing your spouse, recognizing you are both sinners in need of a Savior, and putting in the work it takes to have a great marriage.

There is so much value in finding and building community with people in your same stage of life. When we meet as a small group, we are forging friendships, praying for one another, learning how to navigate challenging times as well as rejoicing in the celebratory moments.

”The Robinsons have truly had a great positive impact on our relationship as a couple!! They lead by example, and this group is truly a place where you will feel at home and have a safe space to share life with other couples who are wanting to do marriage right biblically. They always provide an amazing meal at the beginning of the study and time to fellowship around the table. The discussions are always Christ centered and have truly been instrumental in helping me become a Godly wife and align my priorities right. They have also shared wisdom on how to raise children in a Godly way, and this has truly been helpful as we raise our daughter.
Once you start coming to this group, you won't want to leave. This has been my favorite group to be a part of as a couple and I cherish each time we get together ❤️”

- Jerusha (& Landon) Cook

“Brandon and I have been attending Kathy and Mike’s marriage group that meets every other Sunday since last Fall. We have been married for more than five years. Although we are no longer newlyweds, we want to keep on working on our marriage and learn how to better communicate with each other, resolve conflicts, and grow our intimacy.
Kathy and Mike have been such hospitable hosts. They prepare a thoughtful, delicious, and nutritious meal for all the couples coming to their home every time. Brandon has some food intolerances and they accommodate his needs each time.
During each meeting, we watch a short video and then discuss our relevant experiences and how to apply what was shared in the video. The video series, the Art of Marriage, has helped us to be mindful of certain negative or non-constructive patterns in our ways of thinking or communicating with each other. The group discussions help us to see that we are not alone in our struggles and that there are couples who have overcome similar struggles. This really encourages us to not back down or avoid issues, but to fight for our marriage by facing the challenges together as a team. We also learn how to fight for our marriage properly through prayers and improving communication.
As a couple, we really value the benefits of attending this group and the opportunities to share our journey with others in this group, so we strongly encourage other couples to invest time and energy into strengthening their marriages by joining this group.”

- Mimi (& Brandon) Rankin

"The Robinson's couples group was an incredibly helpful and encouraging community for Noah and I as we navigated from a serious dating relationship to engagement and to marriage. Kathy and Mike are so hospitable and pay attention to every detail when hosting this group. As Noah and I grew to know the other couples in the group more, we were constantly encouraged. Some were ahead of us in their timeline and some behind, but we all met together knowing we were thankful God put our spouses in our lives and we wanted to be the best version of ourselves for them. We gained tools to grow our relationship and wisdom from the stories of others. I would highly encourage any couples either planning for marriage or newly married to go through this group!"

- Maria (& Noah) Polvado

“It was such a blessing to be part of the young married couples small group. Being able to start our marriage off being mentored by couples older than us who have the same heart for pursuing the Lord really helped be part of the groundwork for our first years together. We are so thankful for the community and encouragement we received in our time there. There were relationships formed there that are still strong years later. We are so thankful to be adopted by the Robinson small group now, as overseas workers.
We're only 6 years in, but if you're about to be married or newly married, please don't forget to enjoy each other. Fight for each other's restoration, not against each other. Pray together every day. These are things we learned in young marrieds, or that the Lord put on our hearts and reaffirmed while there.
We are so glad to be married! It's been the adventure of a lifetime so far, and being part of the young married couples' small group had us starting off already surrounded by Godly companions and mentors. We couldn't be more thankful 💓.”

- Jessica ( & Myles) Hardeman

“In those first few years of marriage, especially the first year, having the young/newly married group was an anchor. Not only did we get to fellowship with other people in a similar life stage, but we got to see a marriage in Mike and Kathy that had made it through those first years of marriage, kids and so many other life stages and transitions and they were still in love and strong in the Lord. That gave hope and a vision for us! We were able to learn practical ways to stay connected as a couple and we still refer to those often, especially in our busy season of now raising three kiddos! We also gleaned so much from the studies that they took us through on growing your marriage, leading us and guiding us through hard topics that we didn't even know we would face, but because we went through the group we had that resource. We look back to our time in the young marrieds group with treasured memories and will be forever grateful for our time being a part of that group! We highly encourage others in that season to join, you won't regret it!“

-Libby (& Kendall) Liden

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