The Couple Checkup Every Marriage Can Use

I’m a skeptic.  I question pretty much every “get rich quick” or natural health solution that comes my way.  I really, really want to love essential oils but I just can’t convince myself that it’s not just expensive yummy scents.  A politician promising to do absolutely anything makes me roll my eyes and say “yeah, right.”  It’s just in my nature.

A year ago I was approached by a representative of an organization called Prepare/Enrich wanting Nate and me to try out their Couple Checkup, a quiz type thing that helps couples grow closer together in their marriage.  My skeptical Susannah side came out and I turned down the offer, sure that it was a silly, gimmicky quiz that Nate and I would roll our eyes about and feel as though it was a waste of time.

Fast forward about seven months.  Nate has been hired on as an associate pastor and our senior pastor asks us to go to a training to learn an awesome way to do couple counseling.  As preparation for the class we have to separately take an intense survey all about our marriage, our families of origins, our personalities, and so much more.  The training then gave us our results and taught us how premarital or marriage counseling could happen based off of the results of the surveys.  It was an amazing training (I may have cried during it…) and, even though the training didn’t really have much to do with our individual results, it lead Nate and me to have some awesome discussions about our marriage and honestly helped us grow so much as a couple!  It probably doesn’t come as a surprise to any of you that this program was Prepare/Enrich…  The very program I had been incredibly skeptical of.

When I was contacted again this year about trying out the Prepare/Enrich Couple Checkup I jumped on the opportunity as quickly as I could!  Getting to try out another facet of an organization I feel so strongly about?  Count me in!  Nate and I pulled out our computers once again to take the survey.  As I was filling it out I hung my head in shame for thinking last year that it would be a silly quiz that wouldn’t be beneficial at all…  #SillySusannah

Unlike the long, intense survey Nate and I had to take in preparation for our class, the Couple Checkup only took us about ten minutes each.  It was kind of a watered down version of the one we took before but still got deep!  What excited me was that our results were sent to us pretty much as soon as both of us had finished taking the survey.

The results are where it gets good, you guys!  Not only does it show you the areas in which your marriage is stronger and weaker, but it gives you discussion topics to help you talk through your results!  Even though Nate and I had already talked through many of these topics back when we took the training, it was great to talk through things again (and talk through new things!).  It was really interesting to see where our marriage had changed since we took the survey previously!

Since it’s National Marriage week I personally think it would be beneficial for every couple to take the Couple Checkup!  It’s only $19.95, a small price to pay for the way it can strengthen and shape your marriage!  And don’t worry, if you’re dating or engaged there’s a version of the Couple Checkup for you too!  Don’t be a skeptic like I was!  Take the Couple Checkup and get to talking!