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Tom & Judy Shewmake
We've
been married 30 years and some of it was spent in the endurance mode--it
wasn't all bad but we readily admit that at many times it was difficult. We
have four precious children: Melissa married to David (see right), Tommy
who is married to Sabrina, Timothy and Aarika. We’re also Grandpa and Grandma
to Aidan and Logan. Tom is an Occupational Therapist for California
Children's Services and Judy homeschools Aarika
and also has a ministry for homeschoolers, both of
our parents live nearby - so you can see that we have a full, busy life.
Our
marriage wasn't fantastic, but then we didn't know anyone else's whose was
either. We knew something was missing and couldn't put a finger on a
specific problem and didn't know where else to turn for information or
help. We have read all the books about languages, barriers, planets and
many more. We also attended seminars, encounters and conferences, and tried
gimmicks, dates and games, yet nothing provided the lasting results we were
looking for.
In
the summer of 2004 while attending Redwood Camp Meeting we saw part of a
series entitled Rekindling Marital Intimacy and suddenly not only
did we have hope for our relationship, we found an explanation for
everything – the frustrations and disappointments that we had been
experiencing. This was just what we had been looking for and we felt God's
leading that this information contained the Biblical principles that we
needed to make a difference.
We
attended a seminar by John Regier, completed our workbooks and assignments
and received counseling—this week changed our lives!.
This program showed us how to take down the walls that we’d built, not only
between each other, but between God and others in our lives. We were able
to identify past damage and connect our hearts in true emotional intimacy!
Because of this life-changing experience our marriage is now connected as
it never has been in the past 29 years. We have left the endurance mode and
are now enjoying our marriage while looking forward to what God has planned
for us in ministry!
What
we have experienced impacted our lives so much that we wanted to share it
with other couples who are struggling and feeling disconnected in their
marriages. So we took the advanced counselor training in Colorado Springs from John Regier and now
we minister to couples through Connecting Relationships workshops, and
one-on-one counseling appointments. This information has been central in
the healing of our family as both of our married children have experienced
healing in their marriages and our entire family has drawn closer together
through sharing this with others. It is a privilege to serve God in this
ministry with our daughter and son-in-law Melissa and David Garske and
other friends we never would have met without learning and applying these Biblical
concepts!
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David & Melissa
Garske
Living in foothills of California, David & Melissa have
been married for 8 years and they have a four year old son Aidan and a six-month
old son Logan.
They are committed to making a difference in
human lives through direct human interaction and motivation. Their youthful
spirits and love for God have led them into this ministry and give them the
opportunity to share with others their life experiences. Both are trained
life-coaches through Accelerate. David is an accountability coach to
numerous men in his church.
They have taken the Biblical Concepts
Counseling Basic Counseling course. They have discovered many practical
ways of thinking and being that have greatly improved their relationship and
successes in life.
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