A Marriage between Perception and Reality offers married couples, from a Christian perspective, both theoretical and practical help to allow them to fulfill their goals for healthy relationships. Jason Karampatsos, Ph.D., has the insight to offer this help, based on his perspective as a licensed clinical professional counselor, ordained minister, husband and father. He draws on the wisdom of great thinkers ranging from Plato to Carl Rogers. Then he offers very practical suggestions to his readers so they may develop communication skills that help them understand how their “perspectives inform” their perceptions, and how their “perceptions are greater than reality.” This book is a “must read” for newlyweds as well as those who have been married for many decades. Continue reading
Is Tried
Nobody is perfect. You and I both have heard that before, but some of us really struggle with wondering if our “good enough” is good enough. Those nagging doubts infect our relationship with our spouse, our children, our job, and even with God. The Bible helps us out on that last one and lets us know that “…all our righteous acts are like filthy rags…” (see Isaiah 64:6). So, no, you are not good enough, but that doesn’t stop God from loving you and choosing to use you and desiring a relationship with you. Continue reading
Stop, Drop, and Roll
Thinking about fasting this year for the first time? Perhaps you have fasted before but would like a better understanding of “why” we fast or “how” to fast. This practical and interactive message on fasting may just help you get more out of your next fast. Continue reading
Fasting the iPad
Yesterday our church kicked off our annual 21 days of a corporate fast. Our 7 year old daughter shared with us yesterday that she is praying about fasting from the iPad that our three kids received for Christmas from a close family friend. Our 5 year old son didn’t miss a beat when he added that you can also “fast-forward” on the iPad and made the hand gesture of how you can fast-forward a video. Just goes to show you that even at a young age we are all susceptible to miscommunication. Continue reading
If you want your happily ever after
“Marriage is the most important relationship we commit to here on earth. There are many resources to pick from when it comes to focusing on a great marriage. But in the plethora of marriage resources, Jason’s perspective and expertise is one of the best. If you want a healthy marriage, you need to read this book. If you are struggling in your marriage, you need to read this book. If you are going to get married, you need to read this book. If you want your happily ever after, you need to read this book.” Continue reading
The Institution of Marriage
Recently, a good friend shared an article that was published in the New York edition of the New York Times that was later reposted online and appears on the New York Time’s website (tinyurl.com/nsyb3gk). The article is titled “The Divorce Surge Is Over, but the Myth Lives On” and discusses how, despite the drop in the divorce rate, the media and public at large continues to throw around the “50% of all marriages end in divorce” statistic. This led to a discussion of just how tricky statistic can be and how difficult it can be to overcome held assumptions (aka perceptions). In my doctoral dissertation I wrote about marriage and divorce in America and thought I would share some of that here today. Continue reading
Hope Held Out for all Readers is Transformation
“This book is a must read for anyone longing for improvement in their marriage relationship—and that ought to be all of us. Backed by years of counseling expertise, Dr. Jason Karampatsos is a trustworthy source for helping to make your marriage and mine all that God longs for it to be. He helps those of us who are married to discover how perspectives and perceptions form expectations, how dangerous inappropriate expectations can be, and what to do to foster change. Although this book offers great information, the hope held out for all readers is transformation.” Continue reading
Shoot for the Moon
One of my personal favorite quotations from C.S. Lewis is, “Aim at Heaven and you will get Earth ‘thrown in': aim at Earth and you will get neither.” I love this quote because there is so much packed into it, as it is true on so many levels from so many different perspectives. This is what I would like us to zero in on at this point: What you are aiming for matters. If we set our goals low, too low, we will never get off the ground. Set your goals ridiculously high, and you just might do some amazing things en route to your goal. With my apologies to C.S. Lewis, I have often paraphrased his quote by saying, “Shoot for the moon; that way you will at least clear the fence.” Continue reading
Never Run Alone
Today my wife logged in her 3,001st mile since she started running just 3 ½ years ago. I couldn’t be any more proud of her. Sure she has a wall of bibs, medals, and a closet full of race shirts and jackets, but it is her steady persistence that has encouraged me so much over the past few years. Greg Henderson, former pro bicyclist, famously once said; “Training is like fighting with a gorilla. You don’t stop when you’re tired. You stop when the gorilla is tired.” Continue reading
Catching the Wrong Train
Yesterday I had the chance to once again travel into Washington DC to participate in the Potomac Ministry Network’s NEXT. This time around John May and Mark Batterson had invited Darren Hileman to join them in challenging young leaders take the “NEXT step in their life and ministry”. As has been the case over the past few years, I feverishly took notes in my Moleskine I received as a gift during my first two-day NEXT and I coordinated with a close friend to meet me at Union Station early in the morning to debrief on life and ministry. I have writer’s cramp this morning from trying to write down Darren Hileman’s one-liners and from trying to keep up with Mark Batterson insights on National Community Church’s “18 years of runway”, but there is one thing that I took away from the day that was never spoken of in the meeting space below Ebenezer’s Coffee House: I have never taken the wrong train. Continue reading