The Elephant in the Marriage

Posted on February 27, 2015 by drjason

One year ago, almost to the day, I penned my first word in what would become my first completed manuscript. I only shared this project with a few close friends as I was starting out, and each and every one of them has asked the same question that I have heard from almost everyone else when they learn that I have written a manuscript, “What is the book called?” Well, for the past year it has had a place-holder name that is a variation of my dissertation title, but as of February 24, 2015 the book formally known as The Marriage between Perception and Reality has a new name:

The Elephant in the Marriage: Discover what is trampling your marital satisfaction and how to enjoy a thriving marriage. Continue reading →

January Snow

Posted on February 23, 2015 by drjason

“I never eat December snowflakes. I always wait until January.” -Lucy Van Pelt Continue reading →

Do You See What I See?

Posted on February 20, 2015 by drjason

“Do you see what I see?” Isn’t it amazing how often we can be standing right next to someone, looking in the same direction, and see the same thing so differently. Henry David Thoreau famously quipped, “It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.”

We can be absolutely convinced that we know what we are looking at, but unaware of just how little we see. If there is a point of friction between you and a friend or a loved one, try looking at the issue from their perspective and be open to seeing what they see. You just might be surprised and strengthen a relationship in the process. Continue reading →

I Cannot Do It

Posted on February 10, 2015 by drjason

“I cannot do it,” Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.” Genesis 41:16 (NIV)

Many of us reading this are familiar with the story of Joseph being called before Pharaoh to interpret his dream. It is a great story that teaches (and preaches) on so many different levels. Today I would like us to zero in on Joseph’s humble and accurate reply to Pharaoh when he was asked to interpret his dream; Joseph simply said, “I cannot do it.”. The NKJV translates it, “It is not in me.”. So many of us don’t like admitting that we can’t or are unable to do something. Perhaps for fear of what others might think of us, or what we might think of ourselves. We go on through life pretending to others that we can do it and at times we even succeed in convincing ourselves that we can do it. The honest truth is that we cannot, at least not without God. Continue reading →

Much-Needed Challenge

Posted on February 5, 2015 by drjason

[:en]A Marriage between Perception and Reality is a treatise that carefully considers the theological, scientific, cultural, gender–unique, and psychological perspectives on marriage. Dr. Karampatsos provides a much-needed challenge to all of us to think beyond our own experience of the marriage dynamic and place a greater emphasis upon the experience of our spouse. One of my two biggest takeaways was to realize that my “gut feeling” is strongly influenced by subjective perceptions and perspectives within myself and therefore needs to be challenged. The other was that compromise is not at the core of a healthy marriage. Rather, marriages grow when each person practices the discipline of thinking in terms of what is best for the marriage, whether or not it is best for the individual. Continue reading →

Metrics of a Healthy Church?

Posted on January 31, 2015 by drjason

In the January “Called to Serve” ministers letter L. Alton Garrison shared some interesting findings that I thought I would share here today:

Recently, Dr. Michael Clarensau has completed an intensive study of a decades’ worth of ACMRs to determine what metrics might help you determine the health of your church. Based on his research, he proposes five metrics:

First, missional effectiveness. The metric compares Sunday morning worship attendance (A) with the number of conversions or salvation decisions (C), measuring how many attendees it takes to produce a convert (the AC ratio). A healthy church will have a low AC ratio of attendees to converts each year. Dr. Clarensau estimates that the AC ratio should be 5:1 or lower. Continue reading →

Is Tried

Posted on January 20, 2015 by drjason

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

Posted on January 11, 2015 by drjason

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

Posted on January 5, 2015 by drjason

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

Posted on January 2, 2015 by drjason

[:en]”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

Posted on December 22, 2014 by drjason

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

Posted on December 18, 2014 by drjason

“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, decease 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

Posted on December 11, 2014 by drjason

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

Posted on December 6, 2014 by drjason

Today my wife logged in her 3, tadalafil 001^st 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 →

All I Want for Christmas

Posted on November 30, 2014 by drjason

Say what you mean, and mean what you say. I say it over and over again in working with couples struggling to connect. One of the challenges that they need to overcome is this innate tendency to not truly say what they mean and to not mean what they say. Think about it. Today is sandwiched in between Black Friday and Cyber Monday (no disrespect meant to Small Business Saturday), pilule and the Christmas shopping season is officially in high gear, but there will still be someone out there who will tell their spouse, “Oh, you do not need to buy me anything for Christmas this year.” They will say it, but they will be lying through their teeth.

Lying may be a strong word, but it is the best way to describe it. Truth be told, the person they are lying to most is themselves. Perhaps they fear being disappointed, they feel that if they do not ask for anything then they will not be disappointed when the 25^th of December rolls around and there are no packages with their name on it from that special loved one. Continue reading →

at best heretical…

Posted on November 23, 2014 by drjason

“New perspectives are necessary, but they are not sufficient in bringing health and wholeness to a person or relationship. A new perspective needs to inform, challenge, and influence one’s perceptions if health is the goal…There was a time when our perspectives informed us that the world was flat, and our perception was that anyone who thought otherwise was wrong at best or heretical or worst.” -Jason Karampatsos, PhD

#CatalystNext

Posted on November 21, 2014 by drjason

Perhaps you have heard @Mark Batterson say it before, sick but he would rather have “One God idea than 1, 000 good ideas.” Yesterday at the CatalystNext conference in Washington DC forward thinking leaders from the region gathered to hear challenging words that just may inspire a God idea. Continue reading →

58,272 names etched

Posted on November 11, 2014 by drjason

My girls are growing up. My son is too, but there is something different about turning 7 (in just 3 weeks) or being 8 ½. At four years old Christian is all too innocent, unbelievably cute and adorable; his youth protects him from so much that you and I experience each and every day. Continue reading →

lifetime of miracles behind us

Posted on November 10, 2014 by drjason

“Sometimes we are so busy complaining about what hasn’t happened, story ignoring the lifetime of miracles behind us.” –Steve Kramer (missionary)

It is always challenging to hear someone who the world would say has every reason to complain reminding you that you have every reason to be grateful. Steve was born a few months premature and with Cerebral Palsy, buy but anyone who spends any amount of time with him walks away encouraged and challenged. Encouraged, because Steve’s love, joy, and laughter are contagious. Challenged, because Steve’s unique perspective helps him to see the heart of God in a way that all too many take for granted. Continue reading →

The Struggle

Posted on November 8, 2014 by drjason

Last night my wife and I spent the evening with Tenth Avenue North (courtesy of some complimentary tickets from our friends over @ WRBS 95.1). Although we truly enjoy their music, we are not sure that we have it in us to travel two hours in traffic and stay out late for concerts anymore. Our age and my writer’s schedule of waking up at 5:30 on my “day off” and Jennifer’s runner’s routine of running a 5K before breakfast began to show when the crowd was calling Tenth Avenue North back on stage for an encore and we were both thinking how each song pushed our bedtime closer to midnight. Continue reading →

greatly underestimated

Posted on November 1, 2014 by drjason

“Our perspectives are far more important than many give them credit for, tadalafil and their influence on our perceptions is often greatly underestimated.” –Jason Karampatsos, PhD

Ken Burtram’s Advance Praise for: The Elephant in the Marriage

Posted on October 22, 2014 by drjason

[:en]

Dr. Jason Karampatsos brings a wealth of personal study, research and experience to the discussion of how to help Christian marriages transition from survival mode to vibrant relationships which reflect the grace and blessing of God. Jason has applied his skill as a counselor with great success helping couples within our network of over one thousand credentialed ministers. I am confident his insights will provide practical tools for those committed to producing healthy marriages in a challenging world.

-Ken Burtram

Superintendent, Potomac Ministry Network[:es]

Dr. Jason Karampatsos brings a wealth of personal study, pharmacy research and experience to the discussion of how to help Christian marriages transition from survival mode to vibrant relationships which reflect the grace and blessing of God. Jason has applied his skill as a counselor with great success helping couples within our network of over one thousand credentialed ministers. I am confident his insights will provide practical tools for those committed to producing healthy marriages in a challenging world.

-Ken Burtram

Superintendent, Potomac Ministry Network[:]

Rod Loy’s Advance Praise for: A Marriage between Perception and Reality

Posted on October 15, 2014 by drjason

“The gap between expectation and reality is where many couples experience disagreement and discouragement. With the help of Dr. Karampatsos, seek and the example of other couples, you will learn to bridge that gap and experience a healthy, whole marriage. If you are looking for hope and help, read this book!”

-Rod Loy

Author of Three Questions and Immediate Obedience

This Might Hurt A Little

Posted on August 10, 2014 by drjason

“You see, discount sorrow is something we often associate with needing to avoid at all cost. The very thing that can lead us to Salvation we turn and run from. Godly sorrow is an instrument that God often uses to bring us closer to Him.” (2 Corinthians 7:10)

http://vimeo.com/103273847

8/10/2014 at Cornerstone Church in Bowie Maryland

Boat

Posted on July 1, 2014 by drjason

Got To Tell Somebody

Posted on June 1, 2014 by drjason

“It is, in part, a shift in perspective that is necessary. Your candle is not just for your, stuff your life in not just for you, the HOPE that you have been given is not just for you. Remember, that our perspectives inform our perceptions, and our perceptions are our reality. And the reality is that God desires us to return to that love we had at first”

http://vimeo.com/97156451

6/1/2014 at Cornerstone Church in Bowie Maryland

Jason M Karampatsos, PhD

Posted on March 31, 2014 by drjason

Download Resume and Cover Letter HERE

What I Am Hearing You Say Is “I’m The Man”

Posted on February 23, 2014 by drjason

“Perspectives influence your perceptions, vialis 40mg and your perceptions are more powerful than reality…from their perspective, capsule things had never been this good and their perception was that this was as good as it gets.”

http://vimeo.com/87592991

2/23/2014 at Cornerstone Church in Bowie Maryland

Envision

Posted on January 17, 2014 by drjason

It was a blessing to speak at the “Envision: Driven by a Dream” Children’s Leader’s Conference January 16-18, 2014. Here are some notes from Friday’s workshop. You may notice several chapter titles in there; this presentation served as the initial outline for “A Marriage between Perception and Reality”.

http://vimeo.com/105493724

Paul Young

Posted on November 9, 2013 by drjason

What a blessing to have Wm. Paul Young with us for the weekend. If you haven’t heard his amazing story that he shared Saturday night, I highly recommend you make time to listen to it. . I was talking to him outside my office Sunday morning and commented that if he started writing non-fiction he’d be a New York Time’s Best Seller!

BIg Daddy Weave

Posted on October 13, 2013 by drjason

What a powerful night of ministry with Mike Weaver and the rest of Big Daddy Weave. I have to admit, sales this was the first time that I was ever invited onto a tour bus for some Dominos Pizza.

74th Commencement

Posted on May 3, 2013 by drjason

Great day at the 74th Commencement ceremony for Valley Forge Christian College with commencement speaker Mark Batterson as I was one of two alumni honored.

Rev. Jason M. Karampatsos, PhD