Things I Wish I'd Known Before We Got Married
No. 1 NYT Bestselling Author Gary Chapman's Newest Book Helps Starting Marriages Last -- Starting Sept. 1

Contact: Monique Sondag, 214-536-4319, Monique@Lovell-Fairchild.com

CHICAGO, July 23 /Christian Newswire/ -- The honeymoon is so over. "In love" is in remission; sex falls short; and toilets don't clean themselves. "Surely," say couples at this point, "this marriage isn't God's best for me." It can be, says renowned marriage counselor Dr. Gary Chapman in Things I Wish I'd Known Before We Got Married, hitting stores Sept. 1. The pre- and post-nuptial travel guide is from the author of The 5 Love Languages. For couples in trouble and couples wishing to avoid it, it delivers real answers on the early-marriage journey.

"Our spouse defines our lives," Dr. Chapman says. "Yet, annually, nearly 4 million people tie the knot with few steps to make sure it holds." Since 1970, divorce has soared fivefold. Today's breakup rate all but matches the marriage rate. First-time couples face a 40 percent chance of serving papers instead of each other. In Things I Wish I'd Known, a seasoned counselor mixes office insights and personal confessions from 35 years as pastor, counselor, and perpetual student-husband. Practical, personal, spot-on . . . new couples already say this is the one book easy to read and essential to apply. Experience rings out in each chapter title: I Wish I'd Known . . .

. . . That being in love isn't adequate to build a successful marriage. . . . That toilets aren't self-cleaning. . . . That mutual sexual fulfillment isn't automatic. . . . That we need a plan for handling our money. Dr. Chapman creates an all-purpose tool-kit for men and women engaged or about to be, for married couples, and for singles wanting to start to prepare wisely.

"A relationship is a road you pave, not a highway you merge onto on autopilot," Chapman cautions. His book's maps and tools, compiled from people further down the road, amount to an early-marriage GPS.

Dr. Chapman's more than 30 books include, The 5 Love Languages, with more than 6 million copies sold worldwide. Things I Wish I'd Known is published by Northfield Publishing Inc. of Chicago.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau; Centers for Disease Control; Scott Stanley, Ph.D., University of Denver