Introductory Description Of The
Christian Marriage Enrichment Cruise

Theme scripture verses

Ephesians 4:2-3: Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.  Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.
Tyndale House Publishers: Holy Bible : New Living Translation. 2nd ed. Wheaton, Ill.

We all know that unless plants receive water, sunlight and the proper nutrients, they’ll slowly die. And the same thing is true of your marriage and every marriage. Unless your marriage gets the proper care and feeding, it’s going to wither and die.

Unfortunately, most people get very little training in how to “grow” their marriage. And as a result, they do very few things that actually impact their relationship for the better.

Most married folks live on hope, hoping “things will work out.” And the more romantically inclined individuals think they will live “happily ever after.” But that’s just about as silly as putting a plant in a pot and expecting it to flourish without water or sun. You’ve got to do some things if you want a growing marriage.

And that’s what CMEC (the Christian Marriage Enrichment Cruise) is all about. It’s all about learning a set of tools you can use to grow a healthier, stronger, more exciting marriage than ever before. In particular, CMEC is designed to help you…

Objectives

• Understand God’s plan for marriage … versus the world’s view
• Understand and avoid the 12 insidious marriage busters
• Learn the 12 transformational marriage builders
• Learn these tools in an atmosphere of fun, safety, and fellowship
• Grow closer to your spouse
• Pick up information you can pass on to others

Who Should Attend A CMEC? And Who Should Not?

We’ll be the first ones to admit that CMEC is not for every one and every couple. But for the right couples, the week-long experience is one they’ll never forget and always treasure.

So you’ve got to decide if CMEC is right for you and your spouse. This is what we’ve found out from our previous CMEC’s.

• You should join the cruise if both you and your spouse want to attend. You should not come if your partner is using force, pressure, or threats to make you come.
• You should join the cruise if both you and your spouse want to improve your marriage. After all, no marriage is perfect, and every marriage can be made better.
• You should join the cruise if you’re actually married and want to stay happily married. This would not be the right group for you if you’re simply engaged, living together, or are only boyfriend-girlfriend.
• You should join the cruise if you’re looking for education instead of counseling. Our curriculum is focused on communication tools you can use in your marriage, rather than solving a problem you may have.
• You should join the cruise if you’re looking for enrichment instead of intervention. You will learn how to become a better husband or wife, but this is not the place to come if you’re dealing with significant addiction or abuse problems.
• You should join the cruise if you want to learn the Christian approach to a healthy marriage instead of taking the secular view. You don’t have to be a Christian to attend, but if you’re not interested in the Christian approach, then this is not the right place for you.
• You should join the cruise if you want to put more fun and romance into your relationship. In our crazy busy world, some couples have stopped playing together or have stopped dating one another. That’s not cool. So the entire week will be filled with lots of opportunity for fun. Even the classes promise to be fun.
• You should join the cruise if you’re looking for practical help rather than theoretical lectures. So don’t expect high-level, fancy theories. Every one of the speakers is concerned with one thing and one thing only, and that is … what works.
• You should join the cruise if want authentic, gut-honest advice instead of hypothetical examples. Every one of the speakers has experienced the highs and lows of marriage, and every one of them will tell you the way it really is.

How Much Does It Cost? And Where Does The Money Go?

Of course, for most of us, the financial considerations of coming on a Christian Marriage Enrichment Cruise are important … very important. So let’s lay it all on the line so you know where every dollar goes.

First, there’s the cost of the cruise itself. You select the category of the room you’d like. And the rooms run from about $900 to $1400.

Second, there’s the cost of getting to the cruise that departs from Miami on February 28, 2009. You make your own arrangements, whatever works best for you.

Third, there’s the $97 per couple tuition cost. (Some or all of this tuition … and even some of the cruise … may be tax deductible, but check with your tax accountant.)  Tuition is used to pay for your materials used during the seminars.

And that’s it. Everything else on the ship, your food (except certain beverages) and entertainment is paid for with your purchase of room on the ship.  On shore tours are, of course, at an extra cost.

Of course, you may wonder where the tuition dollars go. First and foremost, none of the speakers or their spouses is paid a dime. They donate their time, and they even pay for their own cruise and their own transportation to and from the cruise … all at full and regular fares. They get no discounts whatsoever. This is purely a ministry for each of the speakers.

And in the spirit of total openness and disclosure, once in a while, the cruise line has given our group a free room. We give that room to our lead teaching pastor.