By Shannon Warden
Special to Connections

“Marriage doesn’t thrive on auto-pilot,” said Dr. Gary Chapman. “No matter how long we’ve been together, no matter how busy we are … as couples, we have to regularly make time for each other and invest in our relationship.”

Chapman, the New York Times best-selling author of “The Five Love Languages,” will be at Triad Baptist Church 6:30 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 16 to encourage and teach couples how to invest in their relationships with renewed commitment. He’ll speak on the two essentials of a lasting relationship.

“Some people think, ‘Oh yeah, I know all about the five love languages,’ ” said Chapman. “But, I find that so many couples only speak their spouse’s love language when they have to, maybe as a way of making up to each other when they’ve let each other down.

“In the first half of my talk at Triad, I’ll encourage people to speak their spouse’s love language on a daily basis,” he said. “Then, in the second half of the evening, I’ll talk about apology, which is the other essential needed to keep us emotionally close and growing in our relationship.”

Tickets to hear Chapman speak at Triad are $15 per person and on sale at the church’s main office and on Sunday mornings between worship services. Childcare is free and available for children, birth through the 5th grade.

Chapman, who is known for his humor and wise relationship counsel, has added several North Carolina speaking events to his busy 2018 calendar. “I feel as passionately as ever about helping couples build lasting relationships,” he said. “Being able to drive to weeknight, local seminars was very appealing to me.”

Shannon Warden, Triad’s director of counseling and women’s ministries, is a longtime friend and business associate of Chapman. She and Chapman co-wrote a parenting book, “Things I Wish I’d Known Before We Became Parents” (2016), and Warden helps Chapman by answering some of the counseling-related emails he receives from around the world.

Said Warden, “Dr. Chapman has been a tremendous mentor and friend to me, from my years working on the counseling staff at Calvary Baptist Church years ago to today. Having the chance to host him now at Triad Baptist is a privilege and a great opportunity to encourage couples at Triad and in the local community.”

Lead Pastor Rob Decker agreed. “The Church should be a prime source of support and encouragement for healthy, loving marriages,” Decker said. “I often preach and teach on marriage, and having a speaker like Dr. Chapman at Triad is just another way I’m wanting to equip couples for success.”

Chapman shares that same heart for marriage. He has written many books on the subject and has sold more than 11 million copies of his most famous book, “The Five Love Languages.”

“I didn’t know when God gave me the idea for the five love languages more than 30 years ago that it would be such a huge hit,” said Chapman. “That still blows me away.

“But, it’s not so surprising when you think about how much God wants the best for us as couples. He loves us and wants us to love each other better and better across time. We can’t afford to be complacent!”