{"id":667,"date":"2013-10-07T12:05:37","date_gmt":"2013-10-07T16:05:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/?p=667"},"modified":"2013-10-07T12:05:37","modified_gmt":"2013-10-07T16:05:37","slug":"the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love\/","title":{"rendered":"The 3 Keys to Lifelong Love"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Have you ever wondered why some couples seem to grow more and more in love as the years go by while others seem to grow more and more annoyed by each other as the years go by? Hopefully, you want to be part of that first group who experiences growing love, deeper friendship and more intimate connection with each other.<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t something that happens by chance; couples who make it work will tell you that it takes being intentional about investing into their relationship.<\/p>\n

As I\u2019ve worked with couples all over the world, I\u2019ve found three consistent traits that happy, healthy couples seem to value. Luckily, all three start with the letter \u201cC\u201d which makes them easier to remember! If you will start now and prioritize these actions in your marriage, you\u2019ll be well on your way to the marriage you\u2019ve always wanted.<\/p>\n

\"Sarah<\/a><\/p>\n

Couples like Sara and Derrick have discovered that intimacy is strengthened when you find activities you enjoy doing together. Archery might not be your thing, but find something you like doing alongside each other. Don\u2019t just have \u201cHis\u201d and \u201cHers\u201d activities, but create opportunities to share the experiences.<\/em> If you like their shirts, you can get your own matching \u201cI heart my hot hubby<\/em><\/strong>\u201d and \u201cI heart my hot wife<\/strong><\/em>\u201d tee shirts\u00a0BY CLICKING HERE.<\/a><\/p>\n

The Three Keys to making it work<\/strong><\/p>\n

1. COMMITMENT<\/p>\n

True commitment leads to true intimacy. Without a rock-solid commitment to each other, there\u2019s no foundation for a marriage. Couples who make it work aren\u2019t the ones who never had a reason to get divorced; they\u2019re simply the ones who decided early on that their commitment to each other was always going to be bigger than their differences and flaws.<\/p>\n

2. COMMUNICATION<\/p>\n

Strong relationships make communication a priority. This means eliminating the distractions (like phones and electronics) to create time and space to talk without interruption. Communication creates more trust, joy and peace in your relationship, but neglecting communication will rob your relationship of those things. If trust has been damaged in your marriage, please check out our post on\u00a0HOW TO REBUILD TRUST.<\/a><\/p>\n

3. CONSISTENCY<\/p>\n

It was Aristotle who said, \u201cWe are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019m convinced that the secret to a healthy marriage is wrapped up in this one word: Consistency. When you consistently prioritize one another and invest in your relationship, your marriage gains the equivalent of compounding interest like you\u2019d experience with a long term retirement account investment. Those consistent acts of love and service for one another, built up over time, will create a rich relationship that will stand the test of time.<\/p>\n

For full access to our entire catalog of marriage-building resources, please check out our new website to learn how to become an<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0MVP (Marriage Vision Partner).<\/a><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Have you ever wondered why some couples seem to grow more and more in love as the years go by while others seem to grow more and more annoyed by each other as the years go by? Hopefully, you want to be part of that first group who experiences growing love, deeper friendship and more […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2136,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-667","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nThe 3 Keys to Lifelong Love<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Have you ever wondered why some couples seem to grow more and more in love as the years go by while others seem to grow more and more annoyed by each\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The 3 Keys to Lifelong Love\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Have you ever wondered why some couples seem to grow more and more in love as the years go by while others seem to grow more and more annoyed by each\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Dave Willis\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"www.facebook.com\/davewillis78\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2013-10-07T16:05:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/wp.production.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/files\/2013\/10\/Sarah-and-Derrick-Poet.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dave Willis\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@davewillis\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dave Willis\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love\/\",\"name\":\"The 3 Keys to Lifelong Love\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2013-10-07T16:05:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2013-10-07T16:05:37+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/#\/schema\/person\/405a54fd607412e98990388e10f8adf6\"},\"description\":\"Have you ever wondered why some couples seem to grow more and more in love as the years go by while others seem to grow more and more annoyed by each\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/the-3-keys-to-lifelong-love\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The 3 Keys to Lifelong Love\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/\",\"name\":\"Dave Willis\",\"description\":\"Building stronger marriages and happier families.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/#\/schema\/person\/405a54fd607412e98990388e10f8adf6\",\"name\":\"Dave Willis\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davewillis\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b10699b14169d9060e994976e94fe6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b10699b14169d9060e994976e94fe6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Dave Willis\"},\"description\":\"Dave Willis is a pastor, writer, podcaster and one of the most popular bloggers in America with more than one hundred million page views and counting. 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