"Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain."  Psalm 127:1

The Marriage and Family Ministry at Suburban wishes to glorify God and grow in our love for Him and each other as we Bring people to Christ, Mature people in Christ, Serve people for christ, Worship Christ with people, and Impact our community through Christ.

We have a variety of teams and people to serve this purpose and invite you to browse through the following information to see how we might come alongside each other's lives to accomplish what God intends.

The Grief Recovery Group is taking a break for the summer and will resume in the fall.  Questions?  Email Betsy Boren our bereavement coordinator at scc_griefsupport@hotmail.com

Family Support Team…In Galatians, Paul tells us to “bear one another’s burdens” and help others to “carry their own load”. Several people have come together to assist in making “body life” happen easier here at Suburban. Some of the components we will be addressing on this team are:  Some of the components of the Family Support Team are as follows:

• Young Family Support (baby pantry, the quilt ministry)
• Divorce Care (matching prayer partners with those going through divorce, practical help, support for the kids and pastoral care)
• InService Care (helping with light maintenance needs, moving, etc.)
• Single Parent Support (helping with practical needs, support, networking)
• A Classifieds System (helping people in the body care for practical needs of others in the body)
• Long term illness (pastoral care, card ministry, prayer support, practical support, etc.) 
•  Holiday Baskets (blessing others during the holidays with food and gifts
• Bereavement Ministry (helping those in the process of grieving the loss of a loved one)

Check out the "Classifieds" display in the Hub to see current listings!

The Family Support Team has need of volunteers in the following areas:

• Becoming a prayer partner or mentor for someone going through a difficult time
• Helping as a Care Connector who comes alongside people within our body who are going through cancer, long term illness situations, or other challenging seasons
• Joining the Repair Ministry Team which consists of volunteers who are willing to do light maintenance work occasionally to assist others in our body who are in need of help
• Contact Carey if you are interested at 753-2802

Maximizing Marriage: Foundations is a 6 week small group that covers a variety of topics meant to refresh and encourage your marriage to grow.  We will offer this small group 2 times this year.  Check the bulletin for details!

Maximizing Marriage: Going Deeper is another 6 week study that takes one topic from Foundations and looks at it in greater detail.  This year we will study the topic of finances in the context of marriage.  Check the bulletin for details!

Are you interested in looking at pre-engagement topics or premarital counseling?  We offer the PreMarital class every fall and spring for 8 weeks at the 9:30 hour on Sundays.  If you are newly engaged or wanting to explore pre engagement topics, this class may be a great fit.  It fulfills most of the counseling requirement of Suburban's Marriage Policy.  We will look at several topics including financial management, expectations, personality styles, gender differences, etc.  Led by Bruce and Carey Penner

Been in a stepfamily for quite sometime and need some fresh perspective?  Or....are you about to become a stepfamily and need some guidance?  We will be offering an 8 week class in January studying the DVD series, "The Smart Stepfamily" by Ron Deal.  Class facilitated by Carey Penner.

Rekindle:  A Night for Your Marriage is a great opportunity to connect as a couple, with other couples, enjoy a catered dessert, and free childcare!  We will offer 2 date this year, so check the bulletin for details!

 What is a marriage mentor and why do we need them? According to Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott, a marriage mentor is a relatively happy, more experienced couple purposefully investing in another couple to effectively navi­gate a journey that they have already taken. The purpose of marriage mentors is to encourage a mentoree couple to grow in their marriage and in their relationship with the Lord. Every mentoring relationship will look different because different people are involved. We have a trained team of volunteers willing to spend time in this type of relationship!  If you are interested in growing in your marriage, please contact Carey Penner 753-2802.