Christian marriage, without the theory.
Ricardo Martins and Vanessa Lima write every day about restoration, betrayal and forgiveness, communication and keeping Christ at the center of the home — as people who hit the bottom and came back.
Brazil's 428,000 Divorces in 2024: What the Number Hides
Brazil's national statistics agency (IBGE) recorded 428,301 divorces in 2024, down 2.8% from 2023, and more than half involved couples with minor children. Ricardo Martins reads the data with a pastor's eyes and explains what the headline leaves out — for couples in Brazil and in the U.S.
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Men Without Friends: Why Your Wife Can't Be Your Only Person
The share of American men with no close friends jumped from 3% to 15% since 1990, and 85% of married men say their wife is the first person they turn to with a personal problem. Ricardo Martins explains why that weighs on a marriage and how Christian men can rebuild real friendships.
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U.S. Divorce Rate Keeps Falling: What the New CDC Numbers Say to Your Marriage
CDC data highlighted by Axios on October 14, 2026, show the U.S. marriage rate at 6.3 per 1,000 people in 2024 and the divorce rate down to 2.3. Ricardo Martins reflects on what's behind the decline and what it teaches couples who are married today.
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Male Depression and Marriage: Why 65% of Men Hesitate to Ask for Help
A Cleveland Clinic survey found 65% of American men hesitate to seek professional help for stress, anxiety and depression. Ricardo Martins explains how depression often shows up in married men — anger, escape, overwork — and what husbands and wives can do about it.
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The 36 Questions: What Arthur Aron’s Intimacy Research Says to Long-Married Couples
The viral “36 questions that lead to love” came from a 1997 study of strangers. Ricardo Martins explains what Arthur Aron’s research actually found, what a later study with couples showed, and how to use the idea to rediscover the person sleeping next to you.
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“No Kids Allowed”: Brazil's Childfree Spaces and What They Say About Us
A Folha de S.Paulo report (Oct. 11, 2026) shows the rise of childfree spaces in Brazil — bars, hotels, inns and even adults-only weddings — a practice Brazil's consumer-rights institute Idec calls abusive. Ricardo Martins comments on what it reveals about how our culture sees children, and what couples and churches can do.
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Husbands Who Accept Influence: What Gottman’s Newlywed Study Found About Sharing Power
In a study of 130 newlywed couples followed for six years, John Gottman’s team linked one pattern to divorce — a husband who rejects his wife’s influence. Ricardo Martins walks through what the research found, what it can’t prove, and why listening to your wife is leadership, not weakness.
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Financial Infidelity: 43% Who Share Money Have Hidden Something From Their Partner
A NEFE/Harris Poll survey found that 43% of U.S. adults who have ever combined finances admit to some form of financial deception — hiding purchases, accounts, debt or income. Ricardo Martins explains why it's a covenant issue, not a spreadsheet issue, and how couples step back into the light.
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The phone between you: what four studies say about phubbing and marriage
Research on partner phubbing and technology interruptions links divided attention with conflict and lower satisfaction. Here are the samples, limits, and practical implications.
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Baby Arrives, Marriage Drops: What Research Says Protects Couples
Studies that followed couples for six and eight years show the first baby often shakes a marriage. They also show what protects it. Ricardo Martins unpacks Doss (2009) and Shapiro, Gottman & Carrère (2000) — and what to do about it.
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“Marriage Deserts”: The New Map Showing Where Family Life Is Disappearing in America
An Institute for Family Studies report released October 8, 2026, using 2020 Census data, maps America's "marriage deserts" and "marriage gardens" — areas where only 13% to 17% of householders are married, and others where 74% to 79% are. Ricardo Martins reflects on the soil your marriage is planted in.
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Two-Thirds of Unhappy Couples Who Stayed Were Happy Five Years Later
A study using U.S. national data followed 645 unhappily married spouses for five years. Two out of three who avoided divorce said they were happily married at the end. Ricardo Martins explains what that means — and what it doesn't.
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