Grateful for Authentic Community

Editor’s Note: AnnieLaurie Walters, of McLean, Virginia, is thankful for the intentional community among married couples at her church. Read her winning post below.

I’m thankful for my church because of the deep and authentic relationships my husband and I have with other members. Being in relationship with other couples who are committed to God and strive to have godly marriages is a key ingredient to the success we’ve had in the first five years of our marriage. We’re in mentoring relationships with couples who have more marriage mileage than us, and we have, in turn, poured what we’ve learned about marriage into engaged couples and newlyweds.

Having the opportunity to connect with other couples and share the ups and downs of the first few years of marriage are huge blessings offered to all married couples through our church. My husband and I are both so thankful to the leaders who have prayerfully worked to cultivate this culture of discipleship and sharing life together in biblical community. We often stop to reflect on what a blessing it is to have these kinds of relationships and we pray that our friends at other churches in other parts of the world will also seek out relationships with other couples for the sake of strong and healthy marriages.