April 22, 2024 • 30 mins
In this episode, Matt & Jenn share some experiences from their recent trip to China and some life-changing lessons they are bringing back. We think these lessons will impact your marriage too!
- It’s easy to lose focus on eternal priorities and purpose. Revisit this conversation with your spouse frequently.
- Changing your circumstances will not change your marriage. To improve your marriage, you have to lean into the conflict and learn to better serve your spouse.
- We are deeply grateful for all of the amazing and beautiful people whom we have encountered in our Intimate Covenant journey — even those on the other side of the world. Thanks for sharing yourselves with us!
Please support these companies that support Intimate Covenant:
- Married Dance — https://marrieddance.com/?aff=29
Shop from this link and part of your purchase will support Intimate Covenant. - Coconu — http://www.coconu.com
Your purchase helps support Intimate Covenant AND you get 15% OFF. Coupon Code: intimateconvenant
To send your comments, questions and suggestions, go to our website: www.intimatecovenant.com/podcast and click on the button: “Contact the Podcast” for an ANONYMOUS submission form. Or, send an email: podcast@intimatecovenant.com
Thanks for sharing, rating, reviewing and subscribing!
Cherishing,
Matt & Jenn
PS — If you have been blessed by the message of this podcast, we would deeply appreciate your support by donating to our mission of spreading God’s plan for intimate marriage and holy sexuality.
Join us at Patreon: www.patreon.com/intimatecovenant
Consider a one-time gift: www.intimatecovenant.com/donate
www.intimatecovenant.com
Intimate Covenant | Matt & Jenn Schmidt
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey Jin want to talk about learning Chinese.
Bo Xi Great.
On this episode we want toshare some incredible lessons we
learned during our recent tripto China.
Let's do it.
Welcome to the IntimateCovenant Podcast, where we
(00:32):
believe the Bible and greatmarried sex both belong on your
kitchen table.
That's right.
We're talking about holycovenant-bound intimate
relationships with hot sex.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
We're Matt and Jen, founders of Intimate Covenant.
We offer biblical teaching andresources to help married
couples achieve a fullerrelationship and an
extraordinary sex life.
For more information, visit ourwebsite, IntimateCovenantcom.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
Welcome, friends.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
Welcome.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Hey, jet lag is a real thing.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Y'all.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
At least it is after you've flown for like 24
straight hours.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
It is intense If you have no idea what we're talking
about.
Thanks for joining us on theIntimate.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
Covenant yes, welcome to the Intimate Covenant
podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
And, if you do not know, we have just recently
returned from China where weflew yeah, it was, uh, we flew
from houston to san franciscoand then san francisco to
beijing, and the san franciscoto beijing flight is a little
over 14 hours going there, andon the way back we did it in
(01:37):
like 11 and a half hours, Idon't know where, why we yeah,
there was a little little jauntdown to Xiamen, yeah, well, yeah
, so we got into Beijing and wehad a domestic flight in China.
So, yeah, the total amount oftime that we have spent on an
airplane, it was, it was a lot.
(01:58):
There were 24 hours that cameand went in which we were still
on airplanes and still inairports and let me just tell
you, your body doesn't quiteknow what to do with that when
you come home, Especially on theway back.
Speaker 1 (02:10):
It's been rough Rough last week trying to reconvince
my body to be in an oppositetime zone.
Speaker 2 (02:19):
Yeah, we went across the world and then came back,
and so, yeah, trying to convinceour bodies um that, yeah, we do
need to sleep.
Anyway, it's dark here, itwasn't yeah, it was an
incredible trip.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
We want to tell you a little bit about it and, yeah,
really more importantly, we wantto talk about some important
lessons that we learned, um fromour experience that I think are
relevant to our marriage andprobably, and hopefully, to
yours as well yeah, we, wereceived so many messages from
you guys praying for us.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Just really want you to know what that meant to us to
just constantly be gettingmessages while we were on our
trip.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
That was incredible.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
That was really incredible.
So, thank you guys for praying,and so, yeah, we wanted to take
this opportunity to just spenda few minutes here on this
episode of sharing, because Ifeel like you guys all went on
this trip with us, whether youknow it or not.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Certainly felt like it and we are back safely, in no
small part because of yoursupport and your prayers.
And so, yes, again, thank youfor that, your support and your
prayers.
And so, yes, again, thank youfor that.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
We had just such an incredible time in incredible
sites beautiful people,interesting food some good, some
bad, I suppose, but interestingnonetheless.
I would say honestly like thatwas one thing that I was
definitely a little fearful of.
I'm not known for beingincredibly adventurous when it
comes to food, but I committedmyself that what was put before
(03:50):
me, that's what I'm eating, andI'm definitely wasn't going
there just to try to find allthe American food, and so you
know what I think?
Speaker 1 (03:57):
there's a marriage and sex lesson in that statement
.
In and of itself, that is nice.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
That's not even in the notes, but that said, I
loved the food, and that'ssurprising to me.
Now, there were things that Icould have eaten that I didn't
eat.
Sure, we passed several streetvendors that were selling some
very interesting things that Itook a video of and kept on
walking.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Unidentifiable meats, but also clearly identifiable
octopus legs that were grilledon a stick lots of seafood.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
You could pick out your seafood, watch it swimming
and then watch it get cooked andI just said thank you, yeah, so
lots of fun food.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Like I mentioned, we spent some time down in the
southeast of China in a littleplace called Xiamen.
We were able to enjoy food andstreet vendors and crafts and
even little shopping alonglittle shops, street markets.
We even experienced a teaceremony, which that was amazing
(05:05):
.
We don't even know how to dotea here in Texas, I mean.
Speaker 2 (05:10):
I realized that my little celestial season, you
know little.
What is it, is it?
Speaker 1 (05:16):
celestial seasons.
Yeah, is that a tea brand?
Speaker 2 (05:19):
That's a tea brand but yeah all of that't stick it
in your boiling water and leaveit to steep for like four to
five minutes.
This is not not the same.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
This is not the same anyway so we had some real
chinese tea in a very authenticway, served in this very
ceremonious uh manner yeah uh,we, we saw the and walked on the
great wall.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Crazy, yeah, very surreal most surreal moment, I
think, of my life so far.
Uh, satin native snack break onthe great wall every time we go
hiking I always take a pictureof our snack break, but mostly
like our feet to like stretchedout and resting.
This is like my little pictureto take and to take that picture
with, like the Great Wall ofChina in the and you know, in
(06:09):
the in the background background.
I was like foreground, but notforeground but background.
Yeah thanks, jet lag y'all.
Speaker 1 (06:16):
We're blaming everything on jet lag.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Years I've decided jet lag is my pretty much my
excuse, but anyhow, yeah, wewalked on the Great Wall of
China.
It was beautiful.
We were there during a perfecttime of year.
The cherry blossoms are in fullbloom.
Speaker 1 (06:34):
Oh, everywhere we went.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
Everywhere we went was unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
Yes, all of Beijing, all of Tianjin, all of the
entire drive out to the GreatWall, just cherry blossoms
everywhere and amazing, and alsolilacs which were fragrant in
the background.
I can spell it just thinkingabout it.
Oh, my word, what a great time.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
Within Beijing, we got to do the Temple of Heaven,
we went up to the Summer Palace,we saw the Forbidden City, all
of which were just mind-blowingin the intricacy of the
architect, the beauty of allthat we saw.
Speaker 1 (07:18):
So many just bright colors.
The glazed tiles, the paintings, vivid, vivid colors, All of it
so neatly preserved.
Just a beautiful place,beautiful things.
Just so many things that arejust so far out from our
everyday experience.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Yeah, I mean in Houston, Texas, we do not pass
things that are a thousand yearsold.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Right.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
So that was pretty amazing to stand on the great
wall and everything else, thehundreds and hundreds of years
old.
So much rich history andculture, I think the most
exhausting thing we did was tobarter at the silk market.
We put our skills to the testand have fun doing things show.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
Yeah, let me tell you there is no way to successfully
negotiate with these determinedmarket people.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
They were determined, but we had fun with them.
We had fun.
Speaker 1 (08:16):
We probably overpaid for some things.
Maybe we got some good deals onsome things, I don't know.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
We came home with cheap China junk that was made
in China, and we were in Chinaand we we got it while we were
in China.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
So there, I guess there is that we got the
memories, we got the souvenirsdo you think the whole trip was
just a Tourist fun trip?
Speaker 2 (08:36):
the main reason core we went, the reason we were
there, exactly was a marriageconference and we it was just a
great, great experience.
We were able to minister tonon-Chinese staff and to help
encourage and strengthen theirmarriages, which was just really
(08:56):
humbling to be able to speakinto their marriages.
We presented sessions over twoand a half days in a beautiful,
beautiful setting the hotel wasgorgeous, that was down in
Xiamen and just had lots ofopportunities to spend time with
these couples, to socializetogether, and they made an
(09:19):
impact on us?
Speaker 1 (09:20):
Oh for sure.
I mean, even without thetouristy stuff we did, the trip
would have been well worth itjust to be able to have spent
the time with the couples thatwe did had a great time there.
Um, we also had the opportunityto meet with some couples who
did not have the opportunity totravel to the marriage retreat,
um, so, yeah, we just we metsome beautiful, beautiful,
(09:41):
beautiful people, um and uh, ifyou're listening, those of you
in China, our new internationalfriends, we certainly want to
give you a shout out and saythanks for making it such an
incredible experience for usyeah, I think we came home
feeling like I don't know howmuch we were able to pour into
them, but man, they poured intous and that that was pretty
(10:04):
powerful.
Truly impactful yeah, truly so.
With this episode, we justcannot help but to want to share
with you about this, the recenttrip and really, as we
mentioned previously, we were.
We wanted to talk about somelessons that we learned while we
(10:25):
were there, just kind of inthinking about our whole
experience, some things thatwere deeply impactful to us,
some things that had, and willcontinue to have a real profound
effect on our marriage.
So we wanted to share a coupleof those lessons with you.
So we wanted to share a coupleof those lessons with you.
(10:48):
We've been constantly havingconversation, even in the time
that we were there and in thetime that we've been back, about
how this trip was reallylife-changing to us yeah, I mean
and we've said it several timessince being home, it, it.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
It sounds cliche to say it, but you know, even like
two in, I remember looking ateach other and saying, well,
this will never be the same Likethis trip is life changing for
us, and I think so it waspowerful.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
I know so, and really a large part of that is because
it just really changed ourperspective about a lot of
things.
So we wanted to share that withyou and some of the some of the
lessons that I think would beimpactful and maybe resonate
with you as well.
One of the things that I thinkwas really surprising to us is
(11:41):
just how, uh, friendly peoplewere and how much people wanted
to be friendly and helpful to us, and I think that I don't know
why I was surprised by this.
I mean, we we do a lot oftraveling, just in general, and
even in the, even on theremotest trails that we have
hiked in some of the weirdestand wildest places, we always
(12:05):
encounter people and people arealways friendly wherever we
encounter them.
I don't know why I wassurprised, but one of the
lessons that I think will beingrained in me is that no
matter where we go, people arefriendly and helpful.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
Yeah, and you know, traveling to, you know, any
foreign country, especially acountry that doesn't speak your
native language, comes with it awhole, for me at least, a lot
of fears, and most of whichbeing, you know, they're not
going to understand me and I'mnot going to understand them.
(12:41):
And I don't mean just language,I mean just as a whole
culturally and every sense andhow will, how will we view one
another?
And it it definitely wasastounding me, to me, to
recognize and see the beauty ofpeople in China, how beautiful
(13:03):
they were and how genuinelywelcoming they were to me.
I mean just the common personthat I passed on the street and
I shared a smile with that.
That was powerful to me.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
Yeah, and as part of the retreat, I mean we we met
people from Chicago and New Yorkand North Carolina and
Nashville, Carolina andNashville and Oregon, even Texas
.
We met people from Singaporeand the Philippines and Korea,
japan, panama and, of course,from China.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
We've we were not expecting to go to China and
meet people from that huge ofdifferent cultures and you know
states but states but countries,yes, yeah, right, but, but we
were, without exception.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
Everywhere we went.
We were welcomed, everywhere wetraveled, with friendly smiles
and a desire, people going outof their way to try to make sure
that we felt comfortable,people that we were directly
involved with with the retreat,but even more so, people that
were working in the hotels,people that worked in the
(14:14):
restaurants, people that weredriving us from place to place,
people that we encountered instores and other places that we
went, people just on the streetand at the tourist sites that we
went to.
We were, without exception,greeted in a friendly way and
people wanting to make sure thatwe were comfortable wherever we
(14:38):
went.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
It was amazing what you can communicate when you do
not have a common language, andso our tourist days, especially,
we ended up more that was theend of our trip and we had our
feet underneath us and we werefeeling, um, equipped, um, and
so those days, we were mostly onour own and, um, especially our
(15:05):
day that we, you know, touredall throughout Beijing I don't
know if we heard English spokenby anybody- you know, but we
were able to communicate so much.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
Yeah, I mean, we learned three Chinese words.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
We did, we learned three Chinese Two and a half
because, let's be honest, I'mnot very good at English, let
alone Chinese, oh well welearned three Chinese words, and
that was sufficient for us tonavigate literally all over
their country.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
Yeah, now, we did have the help of Google
Translate sometimes, and GoogleTranslate for the win y'all.
Yes, and we had some help fromsome of our friends there who
were able to translate for us incertain circumstances.
But even when we didn't have atranslator, with smiles and with
hand gestures, we were able tocommunicate a whole lot more
(15:53):
than what you might even expect.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
And I think that was it.
It was opening ourselves up tobe vulnerable, entering into
these situations where we knewwe don't share the same language
and yet we are, to some level,needing to communicate to these
people.
And yet a smile is is we allshare.
That you know, and that alonetells somebody I, I want to make
(16:19):
this easy for you and you knowyou can make this easy for me
and we can get to where we needto be together yeah, I think the
short version of this is thatwe are all, all people all over
the world.
Speaker 1 (16:32):
we are all made in God's image and I think for that
reason there are, in fact,beautiful people everywhere,
even on the literal other sideof the world.
It's it just was eyeopening tome how vast and how big the
world is, but yet how small youcan make it, uh, and how
(16:55):
comfortable you can make it justby treating each other kindly
and being kind to one anotherand receiving that same kindness
, uh, made us feel so much athome.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
And I think where it stood out to me the most was in
the interaction that we had withchildren.
So y'all need to know that Matthas gone viral in China and
whatever social media picturesharing way that they have,
because Matt stood out with hisbeard and there was one tourist
(17:26):
day that he wore shorts and hishairy legs and that is not
common in China, and so it wasso much fun to see the children.
Most of the very young childrenhave not experienced a whole
lot of Westerners because ofCOVID and the lack of tourists
and tourism and that's reallyjust gotten started back in the
(17:48):
last 12 to 18 months and so itwasn't a very common sight.
I mean, we were really one of atiny handful of-.
There were lots of folks takingpictures of us while we were
taking pictures, so Matt got hispicture taken a lot and the
children just love to look atMatt.
But the minute Matt would smileat them and welcome their
(18:11):
attention, they would light up.
And the sweetest moment waswhen this little boy just was
enraptured by you and reachedout and touched your beard and
it made his day.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
He was quite impressed, you know, as most
people are with my beard,something like that.
All the way to China to getbeard appreciation, that's true,
I might go back just for thatreason, but I looked at that
little boy and I thought, yeah,we're made in God's image.
Kids are kids everywhere.
Children are children and theyall act the same, and Chinese
(18:47):
kids get yelled at the same asAmerican kids get yelled at when
they act up.
So yeah, it was just amazingLots of beautiful people in this
world.
Another thing that reallystands out to me about this trip
is that even couples who aredoing important work struggle
(19:09):
sometimes with how to prioritizetheir marriage and their family
and their work and in theirkingdom responsibilities.
Even couples who are doing bigthings like some of these
couples who have uprooted theirfamilies to go all the way to
China and do important workthere.
Speaker 2 (19:30):
Way to China and do important work there even they
have struggles with trying tobalance all of the important
things in their lives right anda point in point, important
point that we tried to emphasizeto these couples was that godly
marriages must define andprioritize Kingdom purpose in
their marriage.
And you know just that.
You can do great things and yetthose aren't great things if
(19:56):
you're not first prioritizingyour marriage.
Speaker 1 (19:59):
Yeah, and that was.
I mean, that was an importantpart of the material that we
presented.
It was kind of a foundationalprinciple that we talked about
from the outset of the um of ourtime together with these
couples.
But honestly, I felt like thatwas sort of just a buy, was
going to be just a buy point, itwas just a given.
(20:20):
But it was surprising to me howthat message resonated, even
with these couples.
Uh, I felt like this was thatpoint, was really just preaching
to the choir, like, yeah, thesecouples have that figured out,
they've already figured out howto do this, because they're
doing such great big things invery uncomfortable places and
ways and yet, despite thetremendous sacrifices that these
(20:45):
couples have made to be livingabroad, it still is easy for
them to misplace theirpriorities.
And that was a big part of theconversations that we had, both
in the sessions and especiallyin the social settings where we
were.
Speaker 2 (20:59):
And our time working with individual couples right
that resonated with them.
Yeah, and so I think thatshould be sobering for those of
us living much more comfortablelives.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Yes, yes, it's easy for all of us to lose focus.
Yeah, you know, evenuncomfortable situations quickly
become familiar and we canbegin to get comfortable in our
earthly existence rather thanremaining focused on eternal
(21:30):
purposes.
It's just easy to get lazy,it's easy to get comfortable,
it's easy to forget what isreally our purpose and what our
important priorities are right.
So you know, at the same time,the important work that we're
doing shouldn't be supersedingour fundamental relationships,
(21:53):
our family relationships, ourchurch relationships and
especially our marriages.
And obviously that's what wewere there to help them to kind
of recalibrate.
If it's kingdom work that needsto be secondary to your basic
(22:19):
purposes, which is to glorifyGod and to glorify your spouse.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
So learning to put your covenant, you know your
relationship with God and yourcovenant above all else, even
when the rest of your life isimportant.
Kingdom work.
That was a powerful message.
Speaker 1 (22:36):
Yeah, the covenant you have to your spouse is
crucial and that needs to beprioritized.
And what you find then is, whenyou prioritize your marriage,
that you're able to do so muchmore.
It is the root from which thatwork can grow.
It's the fuel for the passionthat you have in every other
(22:57):
place in your life.
So, again, sobering lessons.
Not a lesson that we expectedto come across.
The other thing, at least oneother thing that stuck out to me
is that marriage conflict isthe same everywhere, across all
cultures and all geography right, and I think that was you know.
(23:21):
Again, we got the opportunity towork with many couples that
came from many differentcountries and many different
cultural experiences and anydifferent ways of growing up and
lots of different familystructures as well.
Speaker 2 (23:36):
Right and what we saw is that, no matter where you
live and what culture you grewup in, if you're married you
will experience conflict aboutkids, in-laws, money and sex.
Speaker 1 (23:50):
Right.
Every culture, every culture,every time.
I don't know if that'scomforting or not, but it is
maybe at least a littlecomforting to know that we're
not broken, that I'm not broken,my marriage is not broken or
weird because we are havingconflict, that the health of our
(24:10):
relationship is not aboutwhether we have conflict, or
that the health of ourrelationship is not about
whether we have conflict or not.
The health of my relationshipis not determined whether or not
we always agree on everything,that the health of our
relationship is about how wehandle the conflict.
That is inevitable.
And everybody's having conflict, no matter where you are, who
(24:32):
you are, where you grew up, whatlanguage you speak.
Everybody's having conflict.
But the trick or the key is howam I handling that conflict?
So I think for all of us, oneimportant lesson in this is that
changing our circumstances isnot going to change the fact
(24:55):
that we have relational conflict.
You could move as far away aspossible from where you live
right now and immerse yourselfinto a culture that is entirely
different than anything you'veever experienced before and
learn a language that's entirelydifferent to your own, and you
would still have conflict inyour marriage.
(25:15):
Yeah, so it's not about yourcircumstances, right.
So I guess what I mean by thisis your marriage is not going to
be better off if you get abetter job, or you get more
money, or you get a new house,or you have a baby, or you get
rid of your children and youhave an empty nest, or you get
better health or more free timeor whatever it is.
None of that is going to makeyour relationship better.
(25:38):
The only thing that makes yourrelationship better is leaning
into conflict and working hardthen, through that conflict, to
better understand what yourspouse needs and how you can
serve your spouse better.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
Right, I think we learned some amazing things in
China and I have to go on recordand say everyone that has ever
talked to me about this Chinatrip has heard me to some level
express I don't really want togo.
That was what I hung on to for along time, until it was I'm
(26:16):
going but I don't know that Ireally want to be going.
And I came home from China withGod humbled me.
It was a again a life-changingexperience.
It was stepping out.
A friend of mine said girl, youripped the Band-Aid off and
(26:36):
jumped into the deep end times100.
That was very true.
It pushed me into all sorts ofcircumstances that I would have
never thought possible.
Never thought possible andnever thought that not only
would I survive thosecircumstances, but I would
(27:03):
actually enjoy them.
I enjoyed China in a way thattouched me to my core.
Speaker 1 (27:17):
And it that will stay with me.
Speaker 2 (27:17):
That that was so powerful.
I lack the word.
Yeah, I don't know that.
There's a word.
We haven't found the word yet.
We have not found it yet, and Iam incredibly grateful that the
opportunity was given to us andthose that worked so, so hard
behind the scenes to make thistrip a reality.
Speaker 1 (27:30):
Yeah, you know who you are.
We don't want to call you outby name necessarily, but you
know who you are.
Speaker 2 (27:35):
We are so, so thankful Again.
I think we left having gainedway more from everything than I
think, what we gave to thepeople that we interacted with.
In very unexpected waysinteracted with, but in very
unexpected ways.
Yeah, and I said, I said to aroom full of the people we were
(27:56):
with.
We left a part of our hearts inChina.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
For sure.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
I, oh, I'm going to cry.
I would have never, everdreamed China's beautiful,
China's people were beautifuland I'm I'm so thankful that I
got to see God's people on theother side of the earth from me.
Speaker 1 (28:17):
Just an incredible, incredible lesson, and I think
maybe one of the biggest lessonsfor us is we learned that God
always has something amazing instore for us when we step out in
faith.
Speaker 2 (28:30):
Something amazing in store for us when we step out in
faith.
Yeah, we've said that our themesong is the song Oceans.
You call me out upon the waters, and in this case, it was he
called us out over the water,all the way across the water.
The waters, but it was astepping out in faith and God
taught us some powerful andwonderful lessons in that.
Speaker 1 (28:54):
Truly truly.
Speaker 2 (28:57):
All right, Matt, give us a wrap up.
Speaker 1 (28:59):
It's really easy to lose focus on eternal priorities
and purpose in our lives, andthis is a conversation that I
would encourage you to revisitwith your spouse frequently.
Secondly, changing yourcircumstances will not change
your marriage.
To improve your marriage, youhave to lean into conflict and
(29:20):
learn how to better serve yourspouse.
And finally, we are deeplygrateful for all of the amazing
and beautiful people whom wehave encountered in our Intimate
Covenant journey, even those onthe other side of the world.
Thank you to all of you forsharing yourselves with us,
including those of you wholisten to our podcast.
(29:42):
We would love to hear yourfeedback from this episode.
Contact us by emailing podcastat intimatecovenantcom, or you
can submit anonymous feedbackand questions from our website
at intimatecovenantcom.
Or you can submit anonymousfeedback and questions from our
website at Intimate Covenantcom.
Slash podcast.
Speaker 2 (29:56):
Thanks to all of you for listening, subscribing,
rating and sharing the podcast.
We're truly humbled by all yourencouragement and your support.
Thanks especially to ourPatreon subscribers for coming
alongside us in a very real way.
If Intimate Covenant hasblessed your marriage, we'd love
to have you join us.
Subscribe at patreoncom.
(30:18):
Slash intimate covenant.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
Until next time, keep striving and don't settle.
Hey Jin want to talk about learning Chinese.
Bo Xi Great.
On this episode we want toshare some incredible lessons we
learned during our recent tripto China.
Let's do it.
Welcome to the IntimateCovenant Podcast, where we
(00:32):
believe the Bible and greatmarried sex both belong on your
kitchen table.
That's right.
We're talking about holycovenant-bound intimate
relationships with hot sex.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
We're Matt and Jen, founders of Intimate Covenant.
We offer biblical teaching andresources to help married
couples achieve a fullerrelationship and an
extraordinary sex life.
For more information, visit ourwebsite, IntimateCovenantcom.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
Welcome, friends.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
Welcome.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Hey, jet lag is a real thing.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Y'all.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
At least it is after you've flown for like 24
straight hours.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
It is intense If you have no idea what we're talking
about.
Thanks for joining us on theIntimate.
Speaker 1 (01:14):
Covenant yes, welcome to the Intimate Covenant
podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
And, if you do not know, we have just recently
returned from China where weflew yeah, it was, uh, we flew
from houston to san franciscoand then san francisco to
beijing, and the san franciscoto beijing flight is a little
over 14 hours going there, andon the way back we did it in
(01:37):
like 11 and a half hours, Idon't know where, why we yeah,
there was a little little jauntdown to Xiamen, yeah, well, yeah
, so we got into Beijing and wehad a domestic flight in China.
So, yeah, the total amount oftime that we have spent on an
airplane, it was, it was a lot.
(01:58):
There were 24 hours that cameand went in which we were still
on airplanes and still inairports and let me just tell
you, your body doesn't quiteknow what to do with that when
you come home, Especially on theway back.
Speaker 1 (02:10):
It's been rough Rough last week trying to reconvince
my body to be in an oppositetime zone.
Speaker 2 (02:19):
Yeah, we went across the world and then came back,
and so, yeah, trying to convinceour bodies um that, yeah, we do
need to sleep.
Anyway, it's dark here, itwasn't yeah, it was an
incredible trip.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
We want to tell you a little bit about it and, yeah,
really more importantly, we wantto talk about some important
lessons that we learned, um fromour experience that I think are
relevant to our marriage andprobably, and hopefully, to
yours as well yeah, we, wereceived so many messages from
you guys praying for us.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Just really want you to know what that meant to us to
just constantly be gettingmessages while we were on our
trip.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
That was incredible.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
That was really incredible.
So, thank you guys for praying,and so, yeah, we wanted to take
this opportunity to just spenda few minutes here on this
episode of sharing, because Ifeel like you guys all went on
this trip with us, whether youknow it or not.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Certainly felt like it and we are back safely, in no
small part because of yoursupport and your prayers.
And so, yes, again, thank youfor that, your support and your
prayers.
And so, yes, again, thank youfor that.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
We had just such an incredible time in incredible
sites beautiful people,interesting food some good, some
bad, I suppose, but interestingnonetheless.
I would say honestly like thatwas one thing that I was
definitely a little fearful of.
I'm not known for beingincredibly adventurous when it
comes to food, but I committedmyself that what was put before
(03:50):
me, that's what I'm eating, andI'm definitely wasn't going
there just to try to find allthe American food, and so you
know what I think?
Speaker 1 (03:57):
there's a marriage and sex lesson in that statement
.
In and of itself, that is nice.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
That's not even in the notes, but that said, I
loved the food, and that'ssurprising to me.
Now, there were things that Icould have eaten that I didn't
eat.
Sure, we passed several streetvendors that were selling some
very interesting things that Itook a video of and kept on
walking.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Unidentifiable meats, but also clearly identifiable
octopus legs that were grilledon a stick lots of seafood.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
You could pick out your seafood, watch it swimming
and then watch it get cooked andI just said thank you, yeah, so
lots of fun food.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Like I mentioned, we spent some time down in the
southeast of China in a littleplace called Xiamen.
We were able to enjoy food andstreet vendors and crafts and
even little shopping alonglittle shops, street markets.
We even experienced a teaceremony, which that was amazing
(05:05):
.
We don't even know how to dotea here in Texas, I mean.
Speaker 2 (05:10):
I realized that my little celestial season, you
know little.
What is it, is it?
Speaker 1 (05:16):
celestial seasons.
Yeah, is that a tea brand?
Speaker 2 (05:19):
That's a tea brand but yeah all of that't stick it
in your boiling water and leaveit to steep for like four to
five minutes.
This is not not the same.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
This is not the same anyway so we had some real
chinese tea in a very authenticway, served in this very
ceremonious uh manner yeah uh,we, we saw the and walked on the
great wall.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Crazy, yeah, very surreal most surreal moment, I
think, of my life so far.
Uh, satin native snack break onthe great wall every time we go
hiking I always take a pictureof our snack break, but mostly
like our feet to like stretchedout and resting.
This is like my little pictureto take and to take that picture
with, like the Great Wall ofChina in the and you know, in
(06:09):
the in the background background.
I was like foreground, but notforeground but background.
Yeah thanks, jet lag y'all.
Speaker 1 (06:16):
We're blaming everything on jet lag.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Years I've decided jet lag is my pretty much my
excuse, but anyhow, yeah, wewalked on the Great Wall of
China.
It was beautiful.
We were there during a perfecttime of year.
The cherry blossoms are in fullbloom.
Speaker 1 (06:34):
Oh, everywhere we went.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
Everywhere we went was unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
Yes, all of Beijing, all of Tianjin, all of the
entire drive out to the GreatWall, just cherry blossoms
everywhere and amazing, and alsolilacs which were fragrant in
the background.
I can spell it just thinkingabout it.
Oh, my word, what a great time.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
Within Beijing, we got to do the Temple of Heaven,
we went up to the Summer Palace,we saw the Forbidden City, all
of which were just mind-blowingin the intricacy of the
architect, the beauty of allthat we saw.
Speaker 1 (07:18):
So many just bright colors.
The glazed tiles, the paintings, vivid, vivid colors, All of it
so neatly preserved.
Just a beautiful place,beautiful things.
Just so many things that arejust so far out from our
everyday experience.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Yeah, I mean in Houston, Texas, we do not pass
things that are a thousand yearsold.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Right.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
So that was pretty amazing to stand on the great
wall and everything else, thehundreds and hundreds of years
old.
So much rich history andculture, I think the most
exhausting thing we did was tobarter at the silk market.
We put our skills to the testand have fun doing things show.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
Yeah, let me tell you there is no way to successfully
negotiate with these determinedmarket people.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
They were determined, but we had fun with them.
We had fun.
Speaker 1 (08:16):
We probably overpaid for some things.
Maybe we got some good deals onsome things, I don't know.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
We came home with cheap China junk that was made
in China, and we were in Chinaand we we got it while we were
in China.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
So there, I guess there is that we got the
memories, we got the souvenirsdo you think the whole trip was
just a Tourist fun trip?
Speaker 2 (08:36):
the main reason core we went, the reason we were
there, exactly was a marriageconference and we it was just a
great, great experience.
We were able to minister tonon-Chinese staff and to help
encourage and strengthen theirmarriages, which was just really
(08:56):
humbling to be able to speakinto their marriages.
We presented sessions over twoand a half days in a beautiful,
beautiful setting the hotel wasgorgeous, that was down in
Xiamen and just had lots ofopportunities to spend time with
these couples, to socializetogether, and they made an
(09:19):
impact on us?
Speaker 1 (09:20):
Oh for sure.
I mean, even without thetouristy stuff we did, the trip
would have been well worth itjust to be able to have spent
the time with the couples thatwe did had a great time there.
Um, we also had the opportunityto meet with some couples who
did not have the opportunity totravel to the marriage retreat,
um, so, yeah, we just we metsome beautiful, beautiful,
(09:41):
beautiful people, um and uh, ifyou're listening, those of you
in China, our new internationalfriends, we certainly want to
give you a shout out and saythanks for making it such an
incredible experience for usyeah, I think we came home
feeling like I don't know howmuch we were able to pour into
them, but man, they poured intous and that that was pretty
(10:04):
powerful.
Truly impactful yeah, truly so.
With this episode, we justcannot help but to want to share
with you about this, the recenttrip and really, as we
mentioned previously, we were.
We wanted to talk about somelessons that we learned while we
(10:25):
were there, just kind of inthinking about our whole
experience, some things thatwere deeply impactful to us,
some things that had, and willcontinue to have a real profound
effect on our marriage.
So we wanted to share a coupleof those lessons with you.
So we wanted to share a coupleof those lessons with you.
(10:48):
We've been constantly havingconversation, even in the time
that we were there and in thetime that we've been back, about
how this trip was reallylife-changing to us yeah, I mean
and we've said it several timessince being home, it, it.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
It sounds cliche to say it, but you know, even like
two in, I remember looking ateach other and saying, well,
this will never be the same Likethis trip is life changing for
us, and I think so it waspowerful.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
I know so, and really a large part of that is because
it just really changed ourperspective about a lot of
things.
So we wanted to share that withyou and some of the some of the
lessons that I think would beimpactful and maybe resonate
with you as well.
One of the things that I thinkwas really surprising to us is
(11:41):
just how, uh, friendly peoplewere and how much people wanted
to be friendly and helpful to us, and I think that I don't know
why I was surprised by this.
I mean, we we do a lot oftraveling, just in general, and
even in the, even on theremotest trails that we have
hiked in some of the weirdestand wildest places, we always
(12:05):
encounter people and people arealways friendly wherever we
encounter them.
I don't know why I wassurprised, but one of the
lessons that I think will beingrained in me is that no
matter where we go, people arefriendly and helpful.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
Yeah, and you know, traveling to, you know, any
foreign country, especially acountry that doesn't speak your
native language, comes with it awhole, for me at least, a lot
of fears, and most of whichbeing, you know, they're not
going to understand me and I'mnot going to understand them.
(12:41):
And I don't mean just language,I mean just as a whole
culturally and every sense andhow will, how will we view one
another?
And it it definitely wasastounding me, to me, to
recognize and see the beauty ofpeople in China, how beautiful
(13:03):
they were and how genuinelywelcoming they were to me.
I mean just the common personthat I passed on the street and
I shared a smile with that.
That was powerful to me.
Speaker 1 (13:16):
Yeah, and as part of the retreat, I mean we we met
people from Chicago and New Yorkand North Carolina and
Nashville, Carolina andNashville and Oregon, even Texas
.
We met people from Singaporeand the Philippines and Korea,
japan, panama and, of course,from China.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
We've we were not expecting to go to China and
meet people from that huge ofdifferent cultures and you know
states but states but countries,yes, yeah, right, but, but we
were, without exception.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
Everywhere we went.
We were welcomed, everywhere wetraveled, with friendly smiles
and a desire, people going outof their way to try to make sure
that we felt comfortable,people that we were directly
involved with with the retreat,but even more so, people that
were working in the hotels,people that worked in the
(14:14):
restaurants, people that weredriving us from place to place,
people that we encountered instores and other places that we
went, people just on the streetand at the tourist sites that we
went to.
We were, without exception,greeted in a friendly way and
people wanting to make sure thatwe were comfortable wherever we
(14:38):
went.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
It was amazing what you can communicate when you do
not have a common language, andso our tourist days, especially,
we ended up more that was theend of our trip and we had our
feet underneath us and we werefeeling, um, equipped, um, and
so those days, we were mostly onour own and, um, especially our
(15:05):
day that we, you know, touredall throughout Beijing I don't
know if we heard English spokenby anybody- you know, but we
were able to communicate so much.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
Yeah, I mean, we learned three Chinese words.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
We did, we learned three Chinese Two and a half
because, let's be honest, I'mnot very good at English, let
alone Chinese, oh well welearned three Chinese words, and
that was sufficient for us tonavigate literally all over
their country.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
Yeah, now, we did have the help of Google
Translate sometimes, and GoogleTranslate for the win y'all.
Yes, and we had some help fromsome of our friends there who
were able to translate for us incertain circumstances.
But even when we didn't have atranslator, with smiles and with
hand gestures, we were able tocommunicate a whole lot more
(15:53):
than what you might even expect.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
And I think that was it.
It was opening ourselves up tobe vulnerable, entering into
these situations where we knewwe don't share the same language
and yet we are, to some level,needing to communicate to these
people.
And yet a smile is is we allshare.
That you know, and that alonetells somebody I, I want to make
(16:19):
this easy for you and you knowyou can make this easy for me
and we can get to where we needto be together yeah, I think the
short version of this is thatwe are all, all people all over
the world.
Speaker 1 (16:32):
we are all made in God's image and I think for that
reason there are, in fact,beautiful people everywhere,
even on the literal other sideof the world.
It's it just was eyeopening tome how vast and how big the
world is, but yet how small youcan make it, uh, and how
(16:55):
comfortable you can make it justby treating each other kindly
and being kind to one anotherand receiving that same kindness
, uh, made us feel so much athome.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
And I think where it stood out to me the most was in
the interaction that we had withchildren.
So y'all need to know that Matthas gone viral in China and
whatever social media picturesharing way that they have,
because Matt stood out with hisbeard and there was one tourist
(17:26):
day that he wore shorts and hishairy legs and that is not
common in China, and so it wasso much fun to see the children.
Most of the very young childrenhave not experienced a whole
lot of Westerners because ofCOVID and the lack of tourists
and tourism and that's reallyjust gotten started back in the
(17:48):
last 12 to 18 months and so itwasn't a very common sight.
I mean, we were really one of atiny handful of-.
There were lots of folks takingpictures of us while we were
taking pictures, so Matt got hispicture taken a lot and the
children just love to look atMatt.
But the minute Matt would smileat them and welcome their
(18:11):
attention, they would light up.
And the sweetest moment waswhen this little boy just was
enraptured by you and reachedout and touched your beard and
it made his day.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
He was quite impressed, you know, as most
people are with my beard,something like that.
All the way to China to getbeard appreciation, that's true,
I might go back just for thatreason, but I looked at that
little boy and I thought, yeah,we're made in God's image.
Kids are kids everywhere.
Children are children and theyall act the same, and Chinese
(18:47):
kids get yelled at the same asAmerican kids get yelled at when
they act up.
So yeah, it was just amazingLots of beautiful people in this
world.
Another thing that reallystands out to me about this trip
is that even couples who aredoing important work struggle
(19:09):
sometimes with how to prioritizetheir marriage and their family
and their work and in theirkingdom responsibilities.
Even couples who are doing bigthings like some of these
couples who have uprooted theirfamilies to go all the way to
China and do important workthere.
Speaker 2 (19:30):
Way to China and do important work there even they
have struggles with trying tobalance all of the important
things in their lives right anda point in point, important
point that we tried to emphasizeto these couples was that godly
marriages must define andprioritize Kingdom purpose in
their marriage.
And you know just that.
You can do great things and yetthose aren't great things if
(19:56):
you're not first prioritizingyour marriage.
Speaker 1 (19:59):
Yeah, and that was.
I mean, that was an importantpart of the material that we
presented.
It was kind of a foundationalprinciple that we talked about
from the outset of the um of ourtime together with these
couples.
But honestly, I felt like thatwas sort of just a buy, was
going to be just a buy point, itwas just a given.
(20:20):
But it was surprising to me howthat message resonated, even
with these couples.
Uh, I felt like this was thatpoint, was really just preaching
to the choir, like, yeah, thesecouples have that figured out,
they've already figured out howto do this, because they're
doing such great big things invery uncomfortable places and
ways and yet, despite thetremendous sacrifices that these
(20:45):
couples have made to be livingabroad, it still is easy for
them to misplace theirpriorities.
And that was a big part of theconversations that we had, both
in the sessions and especiallyin the social settings where we
were.
Speaker 2 (20:59):
And our time working with individual couples right
that resonated with them.
Yeah, and so I think thatshould be sobering for those of
us living much more comfortablelives.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Yes, yes, it's easy for all of us to lose focus.
Yeah, you know, evenuncomfortable situations quickly
become familiar and we canbegin to get comfortable in our
earthly existence rather thanremaining focused on eternal
(21:30):
purposes.
It's just easy to get lazy,it's easy to get comfortable,
it's easy to forget what isreally our purpose and what our
important priorities are right.
So you know, at the same time,the important work that we're
doing shouldn't be supersedingour fundamental relationships,
(21:53):
our family relationships, ourchurch relationships and
especially our marriages.
And obviously that's what wewere there to help them to kind
of recalibrate.
If it's kingdom work that needsto be secondary to your basic
(22:19):
purposes, which is to glorifyGod and to glorify your spouse.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
So learning to put your covenant, you know your
relationship with God and yourcovenant above all else, even
when the rest of your life isimportant.
Kingdom work.
That was a powerful message.
Speaker 1 (22:36):
Yeah, the covenant you have to your spouse is
crucial and that needs to beprioritized.
And what you find then is, whenyou prioritize your marriage,
that you're able to do so muchmore.
It is the root from which thatwork can grow.
It's the fuel for the passionthat you have in every other
(22:57):
place in your life.
So, again, sobering lessons.
Not a lesson that we expectedto come across.
The other thing, at least oneother thing that stuck out to me
is that marriage conflict isthe same everywhere, across all
cultures and all geography right, and I think that was you know.
(23:21):
Again, we got the opportunity towork with many couples that
came from many differentcountries and many different
cultural experiences and anydifferent ways of growing up and
lots of different familystructures as well.
Speaker 2 (23:36):
Right and what we saw is that, no matter where you
live and what culture you grewup in, if you're married you
will experience conflict aboutkids, in-laws, money and sex.
Speaker 1 (23:50):
Right.
Every culture, every culture,every time.
I don't know if that'scomforting or not, but it is
maybe at least a littlecomforting to know that we're
not broken, that I'm not broken,my marriage is not broken or
weird because we are havingconflict, that the health of our
(24:10):
relationship is not aboutwhether we have conflict, or
that the health of ourrelationship is not about
whether we have conflict or not.
The health of my relationshipis not determined whether or not
we always agree on everything,that the health of our
relationship is about how wehandle the conflict.
That is inevitable.
And everybody's having conflict, no matter where you are, who
(24:32):
you are, where you grew up, whatlanguage you speak.
Everybody's having conflict.
But the trick or the key is howam I handling that conflict?
So I think for all of us, oneimportant lesson in this is that
changing our circumstances isnot going to change the fact
(24:55):
that we have relational conflict.
You could move as far away aspossible from where you live
right now and immerse yourselfinto a culture that is entirely
different than anything you'veever experienced before and
learn a language that's entirelydifferent to your own, and you
would still have conflict inyour marriage.
(25:15):
Yeah, so it's not about yourcircumstances, right.
So I guess what I mean by thisis your marriage is not going to
be better off if you get abetter job, or you get more
money, or you get a new house,or you have a baby, or you get
rid of your children and youhave an empty nest, or you get
better health or more free timeor whatever it is.
None of that is going to makeyour relationship better.
(25:38):
The only thing that makes yourrelationship better is leaning
into conflict and working hardthen, through that conflict, to
better understand what yourspouse needs and how you can
serve your spouse better.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
Right, I think we learned some amazing things in
China and I have to go on recordand say everyone that has ever
talked to me about this Chinatrip has heard me to some level
express I don't really want togo.
That was what I hung on to for along time, until it was I'm
(26:16):
going but I don't know that Ireally want to be going.
And I came home from China withGod humbled me.
It was a again a life-changingexperience.
It was stepping out.
A friend of mine said girl, youripped the Band-Aid off and
(26:36):
jumped into the deep end times100.
That was very true.
It pushed me into all sorts ofcircumstances that I would have
never thought possible.
Never thought possible andnever thought that not only
would I survive thosecircumstances, but I would
(27:03):
actually enjoy them.
I enjoyed China in a way thattouched me to my core.
Speaker 1 (27:17):
And it that will stay with me.
Speaker 2 (27:17):
That that was so powerful.
I lack the word.
Yeah, I don't know that.
There's a word.
We haven't found the word yet.
We have not found it yet, and Iam incredibly grateful that the
opportunity was given to us andthose that worked so, so hard
behind the scenes to make thistrip a reality.
Speaker 1 (27:30):
Yeah, you know who you are.
We don't want to call you outby name necessarily, but you
know who you are.
Speaker 2 (27:35):
We are so, so thankful Again.
I think we left having gainedway more from everything than I
think, what we gave to thepeople that we interacted with.
In very unexpected waysinteracted with, but in very
unexpected ways.
Yeah, and I said, I said to aroom full of the people we were
(27:56):
with.
We left a part of our hearts inChina.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
For sure.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
I, oh, I'm going to cry.
I would have never, everdreamed China's beautiful,
China's people were beautifuland I'm I'm so thankful that I
got to see God's people on theother side of the earth from me.
Speaker 1 (28:17):
Just an incredible, incredible lesson, and I think
maybe one of the biggest lessonsfor us is we learned that God
always has something amazing instore for us when we step out in
faith.
Speaker 2 (28:30):
Something amazing in store for us when we step out in
faith.
Yeah, we've said that our themesong is the song Oceans.
You call me out upon the waters, and in this case, it was he
called us out over the water,all the way across the water.
The waters, but it was astepping out in faith and God
taught us some powerful andwonderful lessons in that.
Speaker 1 (28:54):
Truly truly.
Speaker 2 (28:57):
All right, Matt, give us a wrap up.
Speaker 1 (28:59):
It's really easy to lose focus on eternal priorities
and purpose in our lives, andthis is a conversation that I
would encourage you to revisitwith your spouse frequently.
Secondly, changing yourcircumstances will not change
your marriage.
To improve your marriage, youhave to lean into conflict and
(29:20):
learn how to better serve yourspouse.
And finally, we are deeplygrateful for all of the amazing
and beautiful people whom wehave encountered in our Intimate
Covenant journey, even those onthe other side of the world.
Thank you to all of you forsharing yourselves with us,
including those of you wholisten to our podcast.
(29:42):
We would love to hear yourfeedback from this episode.
Contact us by emailing podcastat intimatecovenantcom, or you
can submit anonymous feedbackand questions from our website
at intimatecovenantcom.
Or you can submit anonymousfeedback and questions from our
website at Intimate Covenantcom.
Slash podcast.
Speaker 2 (29:56):
Thanks to all of you for listening, subscribing,
rating and sharing the podcast.
We're truly humbled by all yourencouragement and your support.
Thanks especially to ourPatreon subscribers for coming
alongside us in a very real way.
If Intimate Covenant hasblessed your marriage, we'd love
to have you join us.
Subscribe at patreoncom.
(30:18):
Slash intimate covenant.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
Until next time, keep striving and don't settle.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Cold Case Files: Miami
Joyce Sapp, 76; Bryan Herrera, 16; and Laurance Webb, 32—three Miami residents whose lives were stolen in brutal, unsolved homicides. Cold Case Files: Miami follows award‑winning radio host and City of Miami Police reserve officer Enrique Santos as he partners with the department’s Cold Case Homicide Unit, determined family members, and the advocates who spend their lives fighting for justice for the victims who can no longer fight for themselves.