Accepting Relational Influence
Breaking Bread Podcast
Healthy relationships require that we are open to being influenced. After all, what is a relationship if it doesn’t include give and take. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kaleb Beyer explains what both research and experience has taught him about the importance of accepting influence in relationships. Show notes: What does accepting relational influence mean? Allowing those we are in relationship with to shape and impact our...
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3 Habits for Our Kids
Breaking Bread Podcast
Parenting has its eye towards producing future adults. One powerful adult forming tool is instilling good habits in our kids. A well parented habit can pay dividends in the long run by building the muscle memory to do what otherwise would not be natural. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Brian Sutter examples this by suggesting three habits that will produce very welcome attributes in our children as adults. Show notes: Healthy habits can help grow and mature our children. And yet, to do this, the habit needs to grow and...
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One Tip for Human Growth
Breaking Bread Podcast
We all have room for growth. Yet sometimes our progress gets stalled, and we get discouraged. This discouragement might be because we are measuring the wrong thing. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Ted Witzig Jr. helps correct this mistake and teaches us to measure from the bottom-up. Show notes: Measuring human growth can be tricky. We often evaluate our progress by measuring from one of three perspectives: From top-down: This happens when we measure the gap between who we are and who we want to ideally be. For...
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Aging with Intention
Breaking Bread Podcast
To be human is to age. To age well is to transition. To transition well is to adapt. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Ron Messner and Lori Wiegand encourage us to be intentional in the aging process. In so doing, we find abundance of life where scarcity may have been assumed. Show notes: Finding abundance instead of scarcity in the last third of life is a function of intentionality, acceptance, and adaptation. Intentionality: Making healthy choices. Having needed conversations. ...
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Thy Kingdom Come
Breaking Bread Podcast
Advent is a season of longing and hope for Christmas - a time when anticipation fills the air. But what does this waiting reveal about the kind of people Christ is shaping us to be? In this episode of Breaking Bread, Joe Leman and Matt Kaufmann explore how the Lord’s prayer stirs a deep desire for Christ’s kingdom and transforms our hearts to long for him in and outside of the Christmas season. Show notes: What is Advent? Advent is the season when the Christian church prepares for the...
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The Power of Thanksgiving
Breaking Bread Podcast
The Thanksgiving holiday affords us the opportunity to engage in one of the healthiest human behaviors – the giving of thanks. Research suggests that thankful people are in some ways mentally, emotionally, and relationally healthier than their unthankful counterparts. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Arlan Miller and Matt Kaufmann look beneath the hood of thanksgiving to discover the deeper matters that not only make thanksgiving possible but likely. Show notes: Giving thanks is an action. Thanksgiving is the outward fruit of deeper gratitude. By it, our gratefulness...
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Tech & Kids: Understanding AI
Breaking Bread Podcast
It has always been hard to stay on top of technology. It seems artificial intelligence (AI) has just raised the ante. In this Breaking Bread podcast episode, David Virkler helps demystify AI. In so doing, some down-to-earth advice is given on how to parent our kids in this world of AI. Show Notes: A few things to understand about AI. Artificial Intelligence is an expansive field with many applications. It includes everything from machine learning to neural network AI engines and large language models like ChatGPT. Large language models respond to inquiries by generating...
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Hidden Rules of a Great Conversation
Breaking Bread Podcast
It’s not uncommon for communication between two individuals in a relationship to go sideways. And when the pattern is sideways for many years, it becomes even more challenging to set right the cart. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kaleb Beyer and Brian Sutter explain how to do just that. Show notes: The speaker/listener model is a structured approach for communication that enhances understanding between two individuals or parties. When do you use it? When communication is not working and understanding is not being reached. How does it work? Roles are...
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Celebrating 10 Years of Breaking Bread
Breaking Bread Podcast
Join us in the studio as we celebrate 10 years of Breaking Bread! In this celebratory episode, Arlan Miller, Katie Miller and Brian Sutter turn the tables and interview Breaking Bread host Matt Kaufmann. They go behind the scenes of the show, telling stories and reminiscing. Most importantly, they pay tribute to the devoted listenership of Breaking Bread.
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Celebrating 10 Years of Breaking Bread
Breaking Bread Podcast
Join us in the studio as we celebrate 10 years of Breaking Bread! In this celebratory episode, Arlan Miller, Katie Miller and Brian Sutter turn the tables and interview Breaking Bread host Matt Kaufmann. They go behind the scenes of the show, telling stories and reminiscing. Most importantly, they pay tribute to the devoted listenership of Breaking Bread.
info_outlineA lot of health for marriages lies in the prework, before the marriage happens. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Kaleb Beyer and Arlan Miller speak about the pre-contemplative, contemplative and engagement phase of marriage and the great deal of promise these stages hold. They bring to bear resources and advice for both singles and the supportive community that surrounds them.
Show Notes:
The health of the marriage is what individuals bring into the marriage to create it. For this reason, attention to oneself is a critical starting point for future marital health. Singles should consider the following:
- Walk with God in healthy discipleship.
- Develop a healthy Christ-centered identity.
- Grow in healthy self-awareness.
- Learn to cope with uncertainty or unmet expectations.
- Nurture a community that will provide godly counsel.
- Gain realistic expectations for marriage.
- Steward a healthy understanding of intimacy.
Engagement is a unique and time-bound stage for engaged couples. If not stewarded well, wedding preparation can overshadow marital preparation. Couples should consider the following:
- Develop healthy connections with each other.
- Grow in friendship.
- Learn to honor each other.
- Establish a practice of proactively stepping into issues that arise in the relationship.
- Establish healthy rhythms that will carry over into the marriage.