5 Gospel-Centered Books for Wives

There are a lot of marriage books out there—it can be overwhelming trying to decide which ones are worth your money. I love reading, so I’ve read quite a few of them. Since I often get asked which ones are my favorites, I decided to put together a list of my top five. These have been especially helpful to me as a young wife, but they are very Gospel-centered and I’d recommend them to wives of all ages.

1. The Meaning of Marriage 

If you haven’t already read this book—read it now. My husband and I listened to the audio version before we got married, and have also read the print version since then. It really set me up to willingly give Kyle grace, and gave us great foundation what the biblical purpose of marriage. Tim Keller states that “Its [The Meaning of Marriage’s] primary goal is to give both married and unmarried people a vision for what marriage is according to the Bible,” and that’s exactly what it does. In this book Keller is real, practical, and down-to-earth, yet also encouraging and inspiring at the same time.

2. The 4 Seasons of Marriage 

I remember before Kyle and I got married, a friend of ours told us, “Some people say marriage is terrible, some say it’s wonderful, but really it goes in phases.” It didn’t really make sense to me at the time, but it’s becoming more and more clear to me as time goes on. And this book really speaks to that. Once you determine what season you’re in (winter, spring, summer, fall) then you can decide to try to stay in your season (summer—full of love, peace, and comfort) or move out of your season (winter—full of harshness, sadness, and drifting apart). It’s so helpful for couples in any season of their marriage.

3. Comforts from the Cross

This is not a marriage book, but has greatly impacted the way I treat my husband. Elyse Fitzpatrick does an amazing job at bringing the Gospel to life and connecting it to our daily lives. Throughout the book we are reminded of our sinful nature, and encouraged to be transformed by the Gospel each and every day. We’re inspired to treat others with grace, because God has extended his eternal grace to us. This book was a complete eye-opener to me, and one of few books that I’ve read multiple times.

4. What Did You Expect? Redeeming the Realities of Marriage

This book presents marriage as it really is—a relationship in which two sinners come together and need to be willing to extend a lot of grace. Paul David Tripp cuts past the fluff, and gets right to explaining what it takes to build a God-honoring relationship. I love that this book is truly founded on the Gospel, and every piece of advice is backed up by biblical truth. It’s really all about making God the center of everything we do as spouses.

5. When Sinners Say “I Do”

This book presents marriage in light of the Gospel. Marriage reveals our true, sinful hearts, and Dave Harvey brings readers to this realization, as well as revealing the great hope of the cross and how it relates to marriage. It challenges spouses to deal with each other’s sins in a biblical manner, rather than a self-seeking one. He brings to light the real reasons behind arguments and struggles in marriage, and provides biblical advice on how to push through.

I’m so thankful for authors like these—ones who combine their years of experience with the truths of the Gospel to help marriages around the world.

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