Recent Posts
10 Ways to Enjoy DIFFICULT Christmas Dinners with Family
Big Christmas dinners with all the siblings and parents and in-laws. It can be very Norman Rockwell. But it can also be filled with boisterous arguments. Lots of alcohol. Swearing. Political discussions. It can be really uncomfortable. And so, at Christmas, we’re...
10 Christmas Traditions When You Don’t Have Kids
Christmas is coming! And back before my blog became more about evidence-based advice for sex and marriage, I gave a lot of general marriage advice and ideas. Around Christmas, I had some posts and ideas I really liked. And so I thought I'd run some of those again as...
You Don’t Have to Make Your Husband Happy, Your Kids Happy, or Your Family Happy this Christmas
A lot of people need to hear this for Christmas! I wrote this a few years ago, and I wanted to revisit it today as we get closer to Christmas. You aren't responsible for other people's feelings! And many of us need to hear that. Are you responsible for making your...
PODCAST: Even After Everything: Loving Anyway, Despite the Risks
Advent is a time of anticipation, of waiting, of hope. Those weeks leading up to Christmas are supposed to remind us of that in-between period where we know God is going to show up, but He hasn't done it yet. It's the not-quite-yet time. But what if, as we're...
Why Queen Vashti Should Be Considered a Hero
Vashti is an often-forgotten woman from the Old Testament. I love the Bible because it’s filled with stories–heroes and villains; kings and peasants; rulers and prophets. And often the Bible leaves us with stories without giving any commentary on them. We’re supposed...
How One Failed at Being the Perfect Complementarian Wife
She wanted to follow God and be a good complementarian wife. But after a few years it all fell apart! Before I jump into our story, a few definitions. Complementarianism is the belief that God created men to be in authority over women, in the church and the home (some...
Her Cherch Merch That Makes You Happy!
Let's celebrate being a woman who loves God! I've been following the Her Cherch account on Instagram for a while, and she has awesome cartoons that cut to the heart of so much of what we talk about here on Bare Marriage! The artist is Marcia Takasaki, and we've been...
PODCAST: The Problems with Marriage on the Rock by Jimmy Evans
What happens when a charismatic man with no qualifications starts a marriage ministry? You end up with a book that sounds like he wants the best for people--but gives completely unhelpful, and often very harmful, advice. Today Keith and I are taking a deep dive into...
The Problems with Marriage on the Rock (and XO Marriage) with Jimmy Evans
One of the things we’re passionate about on this blog is making sure the self-help and relationship advice in the evangelical world is healthy. Over the last few years, our team has surveyed over 32,000 people, measuring how certain teachings common in the evangelical...
Giving Tuesday: Help Us Reach Those Still in Toxicity
We've figured out our biggest problem. Recently I was talking with a young couple who got married after having done everything "right." They thought marriage would be easy; instead, sex was the hardest part of their lives. She felt objectified; he felt rejected; and...