Ethan, Anna Grace, John, Cecilia, Grayson
We are John and Cecilia Sullivan. We have been married since April 12, 1987. Yes. We have been married for a long time, but there is definitely one thing we can say after all these years. WE ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT MARRIAGE AND HELPING COUPLES DEVELOP THE TOOLS NEEDED FOR LIFE LONG LOVE! We get excited about celebrating with a bride and groom and their family on one of the most glorious days of their lives, but we get more excited when a couple (newly engaged or married for decades) decides to invest in their marriage. The great musician and vocalist, Amy Grant, once said; "The more you invest in a marriage, the more valuable it becomes." We have experienced the rewards of making that investment in our own marriage. Sadly, though, we have also experienced the pain that comes from not making that investment a priority for about the first half of our marriage. That's why we want to lead as many couples as we can through "Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts." (SYMBIS) *Assessment also adapts if you've been married before or married for many years. (SYMBIS+)
When we got married, we were only 20 years old. We sat down with Cecilia's pastor for about forty-five minutes. He gave us a few pointers and told us that we came from good Christian, church going families and we were going to be just fine! Little did we know that "just fine" isn't good enough. God intended the marriage relationship to be so much more that that! It didn't take long for us to realize that Hollywood had been lying to us and fairy tales were fiction. Our marriage has been so far from perfect. We have experienced the struggles of a miscarriage, physical illness, raising kids, depression, addiction, considering divorce, financial strain, caring for elderly parents and more. No. It hasn't always been pretty. In fact it's been pretty messy sometimes. Thank God, through His mighty Grace, He has brought us through so much in our years together and made something beautiful out of something so broken! Through Christ we have experienced individual and relational healing. Over the years, through Godly counselors and mentors and us investing in our marriage, it has become more than we could have ever dreamed. Our marriage has become valuable and precious!
With Cecilia by my side, I have served in church ministry for about 20 years. We started out in youth ministry and then transitioned into pastoral ministry. ( Note: Take a moment to think about this. During some of our most "untidy" struggles, we were serving on staff in the church. Pastors and ministers are human! Sometimes we need help, but many times we don't know where to turn, or if we can even be that vulnerable and survive. Please know that we are here. We have been where you are.) A lot of our ministry now is focused on couples. Through premarital counseling and marriage mentoring, we believe God is using us in what we like to call the "Marriage Mission Field." Although we work with couples from all backgrounds, we take a special interest in couples who are searching for answers in their spiritual lives.
When we got married, we were only 20 years old. We sat down with Cecilia's pastor for about forty-five minutes. He gave us a few pointers and told us that we came from good Christian, church going families and we were going to be just fine! Little did we know that "just fine" isn't good enough. God intended the marriage relationship to be so much more that that! It didn't take long for us to realize that Hollywood had been lying to us and fairy tales were fiction. Our marriage has been so far from perfect. We have experienced the struggles of a miscarriage, physical illness, raising kids, depression, addiction, considering divorce, financial strain, caring for elderly parents and more. No. It hasn't always been pretty. In fact it's been pretty messy sometimes. Thank God, through His mighty Grace, He has brought us through so much in our years together and made something beautiful out of something so broken! Through Christ we have experienced individual and relational healing. Over the years, through Godly counselors and mentors and us investing in our marriage, it has become more than we could have ever dreamed. Our marriage has become valuable and precious!
With Cecilia by my side, I have served in church ministry for about 20 years. We started out in youth ministry and then transitioned into pastoral ministry. ( Note: Take a moment to think about this. During some of our most "untidy" struggles, we were serving on staff in the church. Pastors and ministers are human! Sometimes we need help, but many times we don't know where to turn, or if we can even be that vulnerable and survive. Please know that we are here. We have been where you are.) A lot of our ministry now is focused on couples. Through premarital counseling and marriage mentoring, we believe God is using us in what we like to call the "Marriage Mission Field." Although we work with couples from all backgrounds, we take a special interest in couples who are searching for answers in their spiritual lives.
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