Bob Lepine - Love Like You Mean It: The Heart of a Marriage that Honors God

Love is the most important word in the English languageand the most confusing word. We use the word love in a thousand ways. However, if you are interested in the kind of love that enhances relationships and endures, Love Like You Mean It is for you.

Gary D. Chapman, PhD , author of The 5 Love Languages

Today, the word love is the headliner on every daytime talk show and magazine cover on the check-out stand. And sadly, Christian couples cant help but be influenced by such constant culture-speak. You see it in how edgy and uneasy we are within our relationships. Do we even recall what love looks like, sounds like, and how it acts itself out in marriage? My good friend Bob Lepine is the best guide I know for giving seasoned, practical advice in this matterhe has connected with thousands of couples over the years and has seen it all, as they say. Plus, Bob is so downright practical, you cant wait to apply his insights, especially when it comes to showing love! So, carve out time with this remarkable book, turn the page, and learn to Love Like You Mean It . Its that life-changing!

Joni Eareckson Tada , Joni and Friends International Disability Center

Our friend, Bob Lepine, knocks it out of the park with his new book, Love Like You Mean It . Bob takes readers on an in-depth journey through the love chapter, 1 Corinthians 13. He unpacks the truth of genuine love given in the words of Scripture and brings to light how each one of us can move forward in becoming more like Christ in our love-life. Written for married and engaged couples, this book also speaks to singles as Bob digs down to explore what characteristics are evidence of true agape love. Thanks, Bob!

Alex and Stephen Kendrick , filmmakers, War Room and Overcomer

So we think we know what love is when we first marry... then after 12 months or 12,000 miles in our marriage journey we know that what we thought was love, isnt! If you are looking for the real thing, my friend and colleague Bob Lepine, aka Dr. Love, will be a gentle and fun-loving tutor as he introduces you to love Himself. This is the ultimate how-to book where you can express and experience true love. Buckle up and tighten your seat belt, Dr. Love is going to take you on the ride of your lifeand I can promise you this is the real thing !

Dr. Dennis Rainey , cofounder of FamilyLife and TheRaineys.org

Avoiding sentimental clichs, my friend Bob Lepine provides biblical, sensible, practical help in learning what love means.

Alistair Begg , senior pastor, Parkside Church, Chagrin Falls, Ohio

Grounded in the Scriptures and written by someone who not only has helped tens of thousands of couples but also practices what he preaches, Love Like You Mean It is a treasure. This wonderful, timely book reaches past the shallow, superficial definitions and descriptions of love and points us to the foundation of an enduring marriagean intentional, willful love. Thanks, Bob, for this very helpful book!

Dr. Crawford W. Loritts Jr. , author, speaker, radio host, and senior pastor, Fellowship Bible Church, Roswell, Georgia

Sitting in the radio studio each day with Bob Lepine, we know that we will always get at least two thingssolid biblical content and a smile. He is always grounded in the Word and brings joy into every room. This book is no different. Married couples are longing to discover what true love looks like, and Bob delivers from Gods Word. As you read you will be smiling because he also brings joy on every page. Enjoy and watch Jesus transform your marriage as you live out these truths.

Dave and Ann Wilson , hosts, FamilyLife Today and authors of Vertical Marriage

Copyright 2020 by Bob Lepine

All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

978-1-5359-9673-0

Published by B&H Publishing Group

Nashville, Tennessee

Dewey Decimal Classification: 306.81

Subject Heading: LOVE / MARRIAGE / EMOTIONS

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is taken from the English Standard Version ( esv ). ESV Text Edition: 2016. Copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Also used: New International Version ( niv ). NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Also used: The Message ( msg ), copyright 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson

Also used: New Amerian Standard ( nasb ), Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

Also used: King James Version ( kjv ); public domain.

Cover typography by Kristi Smith, Juicebox Designs

It is the Publishers goal to minimize disruption caused by technical errors or invalid websites. While all links are active at the time of publication, because of the dynamic nature of the internet, some web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed and may no longer be valid. B&H Publishing Group bears no responsibility for the continuity or content of the external site, nor for that of subsequent links. Contact the external site for answers to questions regarding its content.

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To My Church Family at Redeemer Community Church in Little Rock

You have modeled for me what it looks like for a local church body to love one another well.

Acknowledgments

There have been many who have contributed to this book. Most of what you will find helpful in these pages comes from the immeasurable way so many of these people have shaped my own thinking about what the Bible teaches about love and marriage.

In 1992, I sat in a conference room with Dennis Rainey, who asked me one of his trademark questions: Does marriage and family make you weep and pound the table?

I told Dennis that theology is what makes me weep and pound the table. To the extent marriage and family is on the heart of God, I said, I am passionate about it.

What I didnt realize in 1992, and what Ive come to realize in the years since, is how much marriage and family is on Gods heart. Denniss own passion for these matters has been a key part of helping me see the centrality of marriage and family to Gods plan for humanity. During our more than twenty-five years of working together on FamilyLife Today , Dennis was both a friend and a mentor. His life marked my life and marked much of what youll read in this book.

This book has also been shaped through the years by the hundreds of people who Ive been fortunate enough to interact with as radio guests on FamilyLife Today . Clearly there are too many to name. But having recorded more than six thousand programs, those guests have been the instructors who have helped sharpen my understanding of Gods design for marriage.

Along with the radio guests whose fingerprints are on these pages, I am indebted to my friends and collogues at FamilyLifetoo many to namewho share a common passion for bringing practical, biblical help and hope to marriages and families all around the world. Special thanks are due to long time teammates Christy Bain, Tonda Nations, Mike Clowers, Emmitt Fowler, Michelle Hill, Mark Ramey, and Keith Lynch.

Its also a great joy and privilege for me to be partnered together with the new hosts of FamilyLife Today , my friends Dave and Ann Wilson. Their tireless desire to point people verticalto Jesushas challenged and inspired me.

In 2008, God led a small group of men and women, along with my wife and me, to help plant a new church in our city. Our vision was for a church where people would take the Bible seriously, where worship would be heartfelt and passionate, where people would be connected with one another in grace-based, Christ-centered relationships and where individuals and families would live their lives on mission by loving and serving others. I assumed the responsibility as the primary teaching pastor at Redeemer Community Church.