Have you found yourself in crisis without any idea of where to turn, what to do, or who to turn to? It’s somewhere many of us have been, but there’s hope. Both times Andy and Kelly’s relationship was in crisis, they found reconciliation in their marriage, and, ultimately, they found their fulfillment in God by putting Him first.
“We were married for 7 years before we walked into Restore…and some of those years had been almost unbearable.
Andy and I both felt the marriage was over, but our friends asked us to try out Restore at Milestone Church, so, out of respect
for them, we went. Just that day, Andy had dropped off a retainer check at his divorce attorney – that’s how bad it had gotten.
On our first night in the Restore Small Group, we knew we needed to try working things out.
I started Restore wanting to fix Andy. Andy started Restore wanting to fix me. But, that wasn’t how to fix the relationship.
We both had to put an effort into dealing with our struggles as a partnership, communicating, and making decisions together. Together, we learned that our relationship with Jesus was the most important factor in building a solid foundation for our marriage, and we needed to build God’s way.
Working together as a team was working, and God was healing our marriage.
Three years later, Andy started complaining of pain in his joints. It seemed like Andy had no energy, no motivation, and had given up on me, on us, and on our family. He had to sell his business and we had to move out of our dream house. And then, I found out I was pregnant at 41 with a husband who, I thought, had checked out.
I lost hope.
It wasn’t too long afterward when we got the phone call that Andy had Rheumatoid Arthritis, and I realized that Andy hadn’t given up on us at all. He was hurting, and he needed his wife.
After going through Restore again, doing marital counseling, and spending lots of time with God, I finally submitted myself to God’s plan to stay married.
Andy and I both learned how to forgive one another and how to reconcile our relationship built on God’s foundation. It’s changed everything for us, and now, we are happier together than ever.
Restoration does still happen, and our marriage and family are proof!”
-Kelly
Restoration is sacred to God because people are sacred to God. His reach is not too small to step in, help you, and give you hope.
Mike Banas
February 13, 2020 at 10:16 amLove this.
Thank you Andy and Kelly for sharing your story.
I pray God uses you two to encourage many others who struggle with their communication and relating to their spouse.
Love you guys!