The Life Coach Minister as a Wedding Preparation Guide

Henry Reyenga

Today we're going to talk about the life coach minister as a wedding preparation guide.

The life coach minister is a beautiful combination, a ministry sciences role that you can see reflected in the Bible.

When you look at the Book of Proverbs, you see coaching-type content about goals, wisdom, diligence, and the person who works hard and receives the profit. You see coaching principles throughout the wisdom literature.

Inspired by that, the life coach minister is a practical application of being a mentor and encourager while learning coaching skills, where the agency of change remains with the person being coached.

You're not telling them what to do. They are owning their direction.

It is a beautiful combination where life coach places responsibility in their hands, while minister means that you are an agent of the Word of God, an agent of the gospel, and an agent of biblical insight.

When you put those two together, it becomes a powerful combination for marriage preparation.

If you're an Advanced Wedding Officiant and a Life Coach Minister, that's really powerful.

Imagine someone asks you to perform their wedding ceremony.

They may already know that you're a Life Coach Minister because perhaps you're already helping them. Maybe you're offering premarital life coaching, guiding them through preparation, directing them to take the Christian Marriage Growth Course, and discussing it with them.

Then they ask you to perform the ceremony.

In that moment, you take off the life coach role and put on the wedding officiant role.

So first, let's talk about the blessing of them talking to you as a life coach.

In marriage preparation, what you're seeking to do is toggle between your role as an officiant and your role as a life coach.

You may say:

"Would you like to do some premarital life coaching as part of your preparation?"

Again, you're not a therapist.

You're not seeking to diagnose problems.

You're not a counselor.

You're not there to control the couple's future.

A coaching-informed wedding preparation conversation may begin with a simple question:

What kind of marriage are you planning to build after the ceremony?

That question invites them to think about the home they are forming, the habits they are practicing, the forgiveness they will need, and the spiritual foundation they are building.

Christian marriage is not merely a romantic event.

It is a covenant before God.

And you have been trained to coach them in the agency and desire for that covenant.

The Life Coach Minister helps the couple notice the realities of the Word of God in their lives, the realities of things that hurt covenant, and the realities of things that strengthen covenant.

A Life Coach Minister may help couples explore questions like:

• What habits do you want in your home?

• How will you pray together?

• What will you do when conflict becomes heated?

• What family pressures need boundaries before the wedding?

• What patterns from your past do you not want to carry into your marriage?

• What does covenant faithfulness require of you?

This kind of preparation is practical and spiritual.

It is not vague inspiration.

It is formation.

Now, let's say you're here as a one-time wedding officiant.

Going deeper in this area applies to you as well.

These are simply good questions.

Coaches help people take responsibility, and taking responsibility for living out covenant life is essential.

I would recommend, if you're interested, taking our Coaching Foundations class.

Continue with some of our non-directive, semi-directive, and directive life coaching courses.

All of that can help.

It not only helps the couple, but I recommend it because it will help you as well.

Coaching is a key part of helping someone prepare for marriage.

If you're a coach and you're called to be a wedding officiant, why not bring those skills to bear as you serve the couple?