activity / idea
Do at least one off-the-beaten-path, fun activity. Ideas:

• Have a Nerf war.
• Finger paint each other in the shower.
• Try a new restaurant with foreign food and atmosphere.
• Close the bedroom door and invite your spouse to dance.

suggested time range
Once monthly

goal
Create fun, varied memories while keeping boredom at bay.

activity / idea
Create endurance for the sake of your spouse by stretching yourself one step further than is easy. Ideas:

• Initiate sex or try something new.
• Give a massage when you’re tired.
• Listen to your spouse when he or she is not making sense, is overemotional, or is babbling a bit.
• Allow his or her parenting style to travel a bit beyond your comfort zone.
• Forbid your insecurity from taking over.
• Choose not to pigeonhole your spouse, seeing them instead as capable of change.

suggested time range
Once weekly, minimum, for a lifetime

goal
Continue to lay down your life for your spouse.

activity / idea
Set a reminder on your phone to pray a single-sentence prayer for your spouse every three hours. Ask your spouse how you can pray for them that day.

suggested time range
30 seconds or less once every three hours, over the course of 48 hours

goal
Make prayer for your spouse—and seeking the Living Water—a regular part of your day.

activity / idea
Create a custom blast-from-the-past date. What’s a happy, repeatable memory from childhood? Did you love ping-pong, silly putty, or a flavor of ice cream? Was there a snack a parent bought for you, or a movie that makes you feel 12 again?  Ask your spouse about their childhood.

• What did you love to play?
• At different ages, who was your best friend? What made them great?
• What’s one fantastic day, vacation, or birthday you remember?
• What’s one pleasant smell that takes you back?
• What’s one thing you would tell your childhood self?

suggested time range
2-3 hours

goal
Explore territory you haven’t before—and celebrate what went right in your childhood.

As you cool down, it’s time to reflect.

Read Song of Solomon 2:15:
“Catch the foxes for us,
the little foxes
that spoil the vineyards,
for our vineyards are in blossom.”

Pray together, remember to stretch yourself this week for the sake of your spouse, and stay flexible with your growth:

Lord, show us what’s getting in the way of us being one flesh. Help us be jealous for our marriage; give us the courage and wisdom to address what’s eating away at our love for each other.