Premarital Counseling

At NLC: If you are interested in being married by a Pastor at NLC, you must first complete the premarital program. Please call (719) 594-6602 to schedule an initial appointment with the officiating pastor.

Off site: Counseling must be scripture based and a “Verification of Completion” letter, including the subjects that were covered and the time spent, must be submitted to the wedding facilitator a minimum of 30 days before the Wedding for approval.   

As you consider the sacred covenant of marriage, we want to make the preparation experience a positive and rewarding one for you. We believe God has a wonderful plan for your life! One of the greatest ways to prepare is to participate in an in-depth premarital program. In order to assure that you make the necessary preparations for your marriage, the following steps are required:
 

1. If you are considering marriage, contact NLC at 594-6602 six to eight months prior to your tentative wedding date to schedule an initial orientation session with the pastor of your choice. This orientation session will require approximately one hour.
2. At the Conclusion of the premarital orientation session, you will complete the PREPARE Inventory questionnaire online to form the basis for the four feedback sessions that follow. You’ll be given a packet with additional materials used during the premarital counseling process and a copy of the Building a Strong Marriage Workbook.
3. Once the results of the PREPARE Inventory are received, you will meet with a pastor; or a mature, trained married couple for four to five subsequent feedback sessions. These appointments can be scheduled at the conclusion of the orientation sessionWe strongly urge you to complete the scheduled feedback sessions and homework assignments before establishing your firm wedding date. After you go through the feedback sessions, you should meet with the officiating pastor to plan your wedding.

 Marriage Qualifications
Couples desiring to be married by a New Life Church pastor must meet the following conditions:

1.      The couple should have the approval and blessing of parents or guardians.

2.       Each person must be a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, and that belief must be reflected in   

      his and her lifestyle.

3. The couple should have known each other for at least one year.
4. NLC adheres to the scriptural position of a sexually pure lifestyle and abstinence outside of marriage. The pre-married couple must agree not to cohabitate or be involved in a sexual relationship until after their wedding ceremony.
5. If either party has been married before, the previous marriage should have been terminated for one of the following reasons:
   1. Adultery on the part of the former spouse (Matt. 5:32).
   2. An unbelieving partner left, allowing the believing partner to remarry (I Cor. 7:15). 
   3. The previous marriage and divorce occurred before either party came to know Christ (II Cor. 5:17).
   4. The death of a spouse.

Pastors at New Life Church will not marry a couple unless they have satisfactorily completed their premarital counseling sessions and homework. Upon completion, the couple and counseling pastor will sign a Certificate of Premarital Counseling Completion, which is to be given to the officiating pastor.