Category: Self-deception

• Upcoming Webinar—Is Your Marriage a Contract or Covenant?

  

  What would you like your marriage to look like for the rest of 2019 and going into next year? Really—answer this for me! 🙂 If you’re like most Christian married people … you came into marriage with YOUR EYES WIDE OPEN to what God had for you and an ideal of what married life would…

  BethSteffaniak

  October 6, 2019

  Bad Habits, Bonding, Christ-Centered, Communication, Connection, Desires, Discouragement, Encouragement, Expectations, Faith in God, False Beliefs, Laziness, Marriage, Marriage According to Bible, Marriage Roles, Negative Self-Talk, Positive Focus, Priorities, Proactive, Self-awareness, Self-deception, Self-Reflection, Self-sacrifice, Spiritual Growth, Spiritual Leadership, Spiritual Practices, Support, Togetherness

  Bible, Contract, Covenant, Covenant Marriage, Headship, Roles in Marriage, Scripture, Submission, Webinar

• How a Faulty Worship Focus Can Hurt Your Marriage

  

  Today my guest and newfound friend Kevin Taylor exposes a faulty focus related to worship that keeps God from being on the throne of a husband’s heart. Our lives and marriages—for both husbands and wives—will continue to fail, without making this essential shift! Find out more about Kevin below, including checking out his blog. When…

  BethSteffaniak

  September 30, 2019

  Alienation, Attitude, Blaming, Boundaries, Change, Choices, Christ-Centered, Commitment, Conflict, Desires, Discouragement, Encouragement, Expectations, Faith in God, Humility, Identity, Laziness, Love, Love for God, Marriage, Perseverance, Persevere in the Lord, Perspective, Positive Focus, Prayer, Priorities, Responsibility, Self-awareness, Self-deception, Self-sacrifice, Selfishness, Spiritual Growth, Spiritual Practices, Worship

  Christ-centered, Idolatry, Love of God, Love of self, Misplaced Worship, Selfishness, Selflessness, Son of God, Worship

• 4 Ways to Avoid Correcting Choices Your Mate Makes

  If you’ve read my blog for any length of time, you know that I tend to want to correct, even manipulate, my spouse’s choices. There’s just something within me that loves to bite on the bait of this temptation whenever it comes my way. Dare I say it? That something within me is my old…

  BethSteffaniak

  August 11, 2019

  About Me, Acceptance, Accountability, Alienation, Anger, Apologies, Blaming, Boundaries, Change, Choices, Christ-Centered, Communication, Confession, Conflict, Confrontation, Control, Criticism, Expectations, Faith in God, Forgiveness, Humility, Marriage, Marriage Mistakes, Nagging, Perfectionism, Pride, Realistic Expectations, Resentments, Respect, Responsibility, Self-deception, Surrender

  Apologies, Boundaries in Marriage, Boundary Violation, Communication, Conflict in Marriage, Correcting Choices, Criticism of Mate, Forgiveness, Personal Responsibility, Respect Mate, Surrender to God

• 5 Ways to Prayer Journal to Improve Your Attitude and Marriage

  

  I had just finished up loading the dishes into the dishwasher, while listening to worship music and offering up a prayer of joy. Little did I know how quickly my attitude would move from worship to all-out-war! You see, our 5 yo son (who is now 25!) wanted to go out to play in the…

  BethSteffaniak

  January 13, 2019

  21 Days of Love Series, About Me, Alienation, Anger, Attitude, Bible Study, Bible Study Tools, Change, Choices, Christ-Centered, Conflict, Discouragement, Emotions, Encouragement, Faith in God, Forgiveness, Marriage, Motherhood, Parenthood, Perspective, Positive Focus, Prayer, Proactive, Relief, Self-awareness, Self-deception, Self-Reflection, Spiritual Growth, Spiritual Practices, Truth, Wounds

  Bible Study, God’s Word, Journaling, Perspective, Prayer, Prayer journaling, Processing, Spiritual Growth

• Are You Really Enough? Find Out What God Says!

  

  Have you heard the cheerful declaration—“You are enough!”—that’s often bandied about on the Internet and beyond? Oh, my goodness, I have! This idea is meant to encourage those who feel unworthy, raising them to a new and uplifted way of thinking about themselves. And I think it’s true, but only in part. We can’t necessarily…

  BethSteffaniak

  January 10, 2019

  Christ-Centered, Faith in God, False Beliefs, God’s Redemption, Hope, Identity, Insecurity, Love of God, Marriage, Negative Self-Talk, Purpose, Redemption, Self-awareness, Self-deception, Self-worth, Spiritual Growth, Surrender, Trust, Truth

  Faith in God, God’s Power, God’s Redemption, God-designed, Identity, Self-reliance, Self-worth, Significance, workmanship, Worth

• 4 Reasons to Make Love Even When Angry at Your Husband

  

  It was the eve of our one-year wedding anniversary, and my husband and I had one of our biggest fights. We went to bed angry. Rather, he went to bed, and I went to the couch. I wept through most of the night, mourning the death of the marriage of my dreams. Sprawled on the…

  BethSteffaniak

  October 14, 2018

  Acceptance, Affection, Alienation, Anger, Attitude, Avoidance, Bonding, Choices, Christ-Centered, Commitment, Conflict, Connection, Desires, Differences, Discouragement, Encouragement, Expectations, Faith in God, Gender Differences, God’s Redemption, Intimacy, Lessons Learned in Marriage, Love, Marriage, Newlywed, Perspective, Positive Focus, Prayer, Priorities, Redemption, Resentments, Responsibility, Self-awareness, Self-deception, Self-Protection, Self-Reflection, Self-sacrifice, Sex & Sexuality, Sex-Drive, Spiritual Growth, Spiritual Practices, Surrender, Withdrawal

  Anger, Conflict in Marriage, Love for Mate, Prayer, Sacrifice, Sex in Marriage, Sexual Connection, Sexual Intimacy

• 6 Lessons that Motivate Me to Forgive My Mate

  

  I’ve always struggled to let go of offenses and forgive my husband from the heart. In the moment it feels like God needs my help to point out my spouse’s sin or at least to stop it from happening again. When I give in to that thinking it mushrooms. I feel like I need to…

  BethSteffaniak

  September 23, 2018

  About Me, Acceptance, Alienation, Anger, Blaming, Choices, Christ-Centered, Confession, Conflict, Control, Denial, Emotions, Entitlement, Expectations, False Beliefs, Forgiveness, God’s Redemption, Grace, Lessons Learned in Marriage, Marriage, Marriage Mistakes, Negative Self-Talk, Perspective, Positive Focus, Prayer, Pride, Realistic Expectations, Resentments, Responsibility, Self-deception, Self-Protection, Spiritual Growth, Spiritual Practices, Surrender, Victim Mentality, Wounds

  Anger, Bitterness, Christ’s Forgiveness, Forgive, Forgiveness, Realistic Expectations, Redemption, Surrender, Trust in God, Wounds

• 5 Battle Tools to Help in Hard Moments

  

  I’m excited to have a guest blogger and author, Kelly Balarie, with me today! I’m honored to be on the launch team of her latest book, Battle Ready, that is available starting today, July 3, 2018. (You can find the link to her book on Amazon by clicking on the book cover below.) Kelly offers such…

  BethSteffaniak

  July 3, 2018

  Attitude, Bad Habits, Choices, Christ-Centered, Deception, Discouragement, Encouragement, Faith in God, False Beliefs, Identity, Insecurity, Negative Self-Talk, Perfectionism, Perspective, Positive Focus, Prayer, Realistic Expectations, Self-awareness, Self-deception, Spiritual Growth, Spiritual Warfare, Truth, Victim Mentality, Wounds

  Faith in God, Fear, Insecurity, Perfectionism, Prayer, Rejection, Satan, Spiritual Tools, Spiritual Warfare

• The Unfair Task of Respecting Your Mate No Matter What

  

  I think people often confuse respect and trust. Why do I say that? Because I hear people, women in particular, saying their mates must earn their respect before they will show respect. I totally understand the challenge to treat with respect the mate who acts in a way that is not respectable. It certainly feels…

  BethSteffaniak

  April 22, 2018

  Acceptance, Anger, Attitude, Avoidance, Betrayal, Change, Choices, Christ-Centered, Conflict, Discouragement, Emotions, Entitlement, Expectations, False Beliefs, Grace, Jesus’ Sacrifice, Love, Love for God, Marriage, Negative Self-Talk, Patience, Perseverance, Positive Focus, Realistic Expectations, Respect, Responsibility, Self-deception, Submission, Surrender, Trust, Unfair Realities in Marriage, Vulnerability

  Disrespect, Emotions, Jesus’ Sacrifice, Respect, Respectable, Submission, Trust, Unfair Realities, Withdrawal

• 6 Reasons Attraction Fades in Marriage

  

  Most spouses at some point inevitably face distractions and/or hindrances to sexual and physical attraction in marriage. I’ve encountered this at various points in my marriage too, but every single time it’s had little to do with how physically or sexually attractive my mate was in that particular moment. #disillusionment I think this is true…

  BethSteffaniak

  March 25, 2018

  Abandonment, About Me, Acceptance, Affairs, Alienation, Anger, Attraction, Avoidance, Blaming, Boundaries, Conflict, Desires, Discouragement, Emotions, Expectations, False Beliefs, Forgiveness, Infatuation, Love, Lust, Marriage, Marriage Mistakes, Mess Makers, Miscarriage, Money Matters, Motherhood, Pain, Parenthood, Priorities, Rekindling Sex Series, Resentments, Self-awareness, Self-deception, Self-Reflection, Sex & Sexuality, Sex-Drive, Sex/Porn Addiction, Spiritual Warfare, Toxic Baggage, Withdrawal, Wounds

  Affair, Attraction, Conflict, Forgiveness, Infatuation, Infidelity, Pain, Sex, Sex-Drive, Sexual Attraction, Spiritual Warfare, Wounds