A little background story:
Some friends of ours went on a marriage encounter weekend about 2 years ago, and had nothing but wonderful things to say about the weekend. They were careful to not tell us what they learned or exactly what happened on the weekend, but only had the highest compliments and praises.
We recently attended a United Marriage Encounter weekend. A few months ago, our friends gave us early birthday presents and gifted us with paying our fee for the upcoming marriage weekend. Daniel and I were both so excited to be able to attend this marriage encounter weekend.
The organization that puts on the weekend is United Marriage Encounter. You can read more about the organization and upcoming weekends here.
The organization is funded by donations and gifts. Our weekend: hotel, meals, materials, etc...were paid for by previous couples that had attended a marriage conference. And because we were given the gift of the registration fee, we enjoyed the weekend without cost. It was one of the biggest blessings I have ever received.
Here we are starting the weekend. Yes, I'm still waiting for my bangs to grow out...
P.S. We ate McDonald's right before this and they had a Mccafe, so I had an iced coffee. So happy!
The weekend is a 48 hour commitment. It is NOT a retreat or restful vacation :) Each minute is scheduled and the weekend is hard work.
However- there are not enough words to explain how our marriage has grown over these last few days. I won't go into detail about the method or information that is taught, because it is something you must experience yourself. (and there are lots of fun surprises along the way!)
This weekend is designed for people who have good marriages and want to make them better. Before (and after), I would describe our marriage as good. Daniel and I are not people who yell or raise our voices, and we're not really argumentative in our marriage. Comparing us to most marriages, I would say that we had it pretty good.
BUT, there is always room for improvement!! :)
Before this weekend, we both knew our communication with one another was not great. We communicated, but often felt like we were misunderstanding the other person.
After this weekend, I feel like we communicate in a wonderful new way!!! I left this past weekend, feeling like I had just gotten married all over again. The emotions and feelings were that strong! The qualities I saw in Daniel when we were dating, were renewed and made stronger this weekend. I felt myself falling in love with Daniel all over again, in a much deeper way that I have never felt before.
I am so excited about our future and growing more in our marriage. I have a strong peace and believe that we are stronger as a couple.
I would HIGHLY recommend a UME weekend to any married couple. I beg you to find a weekend near you and make every effort to attend. Yes, you're giving up 48 hours of your weekend, but you will gain and walk away with a stronger better marriage in the end. It's worth every minute!!!
Has anyone been on a UME weekend before????
love
Laura
This sounds amazing! Unfortunately, there isn't anything happening near us, but we might have to travel and make a weekend out of it!
ReplyDeleteI have been on 45 UME weekends and they are all amazing! :-) We receive a weekend every time we give one!
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