Bob Lepine’s Build a Stronger Marriage: The Path to Oneness is a whirlwind of diagnosing of what can go wrong in a marriage, identification of what is necessary to remedy it, and administration of “marriage best practices.”  Lepine further breaks down the first part, covering both the way we think of the institution of marriage, and the baggage that we tend to bring into it.   

As a Biblical counselor, I was glad to see exhortations in the form of questions that not only test one’s faith but one’s worldview as well.  Even in the introduction, Lepine encourages one to continue with the words: “You said you’re a Christian, right?  So you believe that God was powerful enough to raise his Son from death to life.  But you don’t think God can bring your broken marriage back to life?”  Another helpful feature of this book is Lepine’s suggestion to write down specific insights into one’s own heart (regarding only the issues that one can take responsibility for, while disregarding all the spouse’s issues that one could spend eternity complaining about) after each chapter.  Only then, can one confess to God and ask for His wisdom, His forgiveness for sins of commission and omission, and His strength to grow as a godly husband or wife. 

As a Christian psychologist, I appreciate the practical guidance Lepine has accumulated for the reader, especially when it is riddled with empirically tested approaches.  To top it off, all of this is very easy to read—the sentences are short with many of the one-to-two-to-three-word variety (although the preponderance of sentence fragments may be a turnoff for those who are grammatically-inclined).  In similar fashion, the 17 chapters in four parts may be intimidating for those in the throes of marital impatience, but they are handled as short summaries that keep the monograph to a pithy volume less than a hundred pages in length.   

As a husband, it was helpful to be reminded to “have someone who can walk together with you and your spouse as you read this book.”  This may seem unnecessary or not worth mentioning for some.  However, finding someone to walk with you and your spouse can be important because they set us up for success with the harder-to-implement steps down the road. 

With all of this in mind, take heart!  With God, there is nothing to hold you and your spouse (and your mutual marriage supporter) back from starting out on the path to oneness! 

Review By: Dr. Ronnie Eng, author of Faith Working Through Love: Biblically-Grounded, Trauma-Focused, Evidenced-Based Practices for Holy Matrimony

Disclaimer: A complimentary copy of this book was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.