Saturday, January 3, 2015

The Uncommon Marriage Adventure by Tony and Lauren Dungy (and Nathan Whitaker)



Another winner by Tony Dungy and his wife Lauren! Right upfront I'll say that our family are big fans of Tony Dungy so I was pretty sure I'd like this before I opened the cover. I actually have not read his book Uncommon Marriage (somehow I missed that, but I'll look for it now!) but this devotional does not depend on your having read that book.

This book Uncommon Marriage Adventure is a daily devotional intended to be read by both husband and wife, with some days written by Tony Dungy and others written by his wife Lauren. Some days' entries are a more geared toward the husband, some more toward the wife, some toward the family. The book is intended to be read by married (or soon-to-be) couples. It addresses 8 key topics which the authors identified as "The Core Principles of an Uncommon Marriage" --

1. Look to the Bible as your guidebook and to Christ as your living example
2. Stay in sync spiritually
3. Manage expectations and appreciate your differences
4. Work as a team
5. Practice committed love
6. Communicate well and often
7. Don't run away from conflict
8. Support each other in serving others

The daily devotions center on one of these 8 topics (2 weeks per topic). The authors seem very down-to-earth and easy to identify with through their writings. They're pretty much a superstar family (I mean, TONY DUNGY!!!!!) but as you read through you identify with struggles and issues that they mention.

Each day has a topic, a core practice (or principle), Scripture passage(s) and a narration followed by an application section. I found that this is very easy to read and is a good addition to a daily time spent with God.

I enjoyed this book and will recommend it to others. It might not be all brand new ideas, but they are ideas that we need to be reminded of throughout life.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review. I was not required to write a positive review.