There are a lot of great books out there. Lots are meant to help marriages. Some even target engaged couples.
It’s important to not just focus on the wedding. That’s just a short period of time. When you invest so much time planning the wedding, don’t you think it’s worth it to invest in all the years that take place after the wedding day – the marriage. Even better, it’s just time that’s involved. Books are cheap compared to the wedding.
Today I want to share some of my favorite books for anyone who is engaged…or married. These were really useful for my husband and I as we tried to understand each other better and learned more about one another.
- For Men Only by Shaunti and Jeff Feldhahn. This is a really helpful book for guys to understand five key differences of women that often cause confusion. I read through this (as a woman) and agree with pretty much everything.
- For Women Only by Shaunti Feldhahn. This is the women’s version of For Men Only and focuses on the things men wish women knew about them. This was a great book to help me understand my husband better. It’s also really endearing. Just because some guys have trouble showing affection doesn’t mean they don’t have those emotions. They may have trouble showing it. Guys also deal with a lot of mental stuff I never thought about.
- Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman. We went through this book together while we were dating. We were surprised to find out that we’re pretty similar, but it was so helpful to understand how we show/receive love.
- His Needs Her Needs by Willard Harley. This is really similar to the For Men Only and For Women Only books. It talks about how women want love and men desire respect…among other things. Actually, that’s also in the book Love and Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs, which friends have said is also good.
- 101 Questions to Ask Before You Get Engaged by H. Norman Wright. This book is really great for dates and long drives. The book lists 101 questions, one per page, and gives you space to write down the answers. Ask each other the questions and discuss them. It’s a great way to talk about important, mundane and random topics without having the awkward silence while trying to come up with the question.
- Radiant Bride by Emily Mills. As a former bride and a Christian, I found this very useful to focus on my spiritual walk while planning everything else. Wedding planning needs to get done and investing in the marriage is incredibly important, but how can you focus on those if you are struggling? This book looks at the historical and spiritual meanings behind various wedding traditions. It also asks some very good questions of each bride so they can make sure their heart is in a good place to handle everything else.
Hope these are as useful to you as they were to us.
Have you found any other helpful books to help prepare for marriage?