Christian couples must develop good communication skills for blissful marriage – Pastor Adewale

Bisi Adewale, president, Living Home Foundation has called on Christian couples to develop good communication skills in dealing with marital differences as they thrive towards building a godly home.

“When there are issues, remember, the husband is not the problem; the wife is not the problem. The problem is the problem,” Adewale stated in a keynote address on ‘Breaking the Pattern: Building a Marriage Better than the One You Inherited,’ at the Marriage & Money Summit 2.0.

He emphasised that when challenges arise in marriage, couples should remember that their spouse is not the problem. He stated that many marital conflicts are rooted in deeper issues shaped by upbringing, environment, personal experiences and the pain or gains of the past.

Adewale encouraged couples to look beyond surface disagreements, understand the underlying influences on each other’s behaviour and confront their challenges together rather than turn against one another.

He therefore reiterated the essence of building stronger families that will contribute to stronger communities, by making marriage education, household financial literacy and family empowerment an important conversation for national development.

Adetutu Afolabi, convener, Marriage and Money Summit, stated that successful marriages cannot be built on affection alone. According to her, financial intelligence, emotional intimacy, effective communication, intentional parenting and legal awareness must work together to create stable, prosperous households.

“A successful marriage is not built on love alone. It requires financial wisdom, emotional connection, healthy intimacy, intentional parenting and an understanding of the legal responsibilities that protect the family,” stated Afolabi, who led conversations on sex, finance, parenting and family law, at the marriage and money summit 2.0.

Afolabi, who also unveiled a holistic blueprint for stronger marriages, financial stability, healthy relationships and generational wealth; disclosed that when couples understand that every decision made within the home has emotional, financial and generational consequences, they begin to approach marriage as a collaborative partnership rather than an individual struggle.

She advocates treating the family as an important economic unit where financial decisions, relationships and shared responsibilities directly influence household prosperity. According to Afolabi, collaborative partnership creates a multiplier effect, allowing couples to combine their strengths, resources and efforts to achieve outcomes greater than they could achieve independently.

Victor Afolabi, founder, Hazon Holdings and convener of Markhack, urged couples to recognise and appreciate each other’s strengths while intentionally defining their roles and responsibilities within the marriage.

He reiterated the importance of understanding individual capabilities, establishing clear expectations and working collaboratively to achieve shared family and financial goals; as discussions explored financial literacy for couples, wealth creation, and marital communication, sexual intimacy, parenting strategies, family asset protection and generational wealth planning.

The summit challenged singles and engaged couples to discuss financial expectations, intimacy, parenting values and long-term goals before marriage. For established couples, the emphasis was on replacing financial secrecy, unhealthy competition and emotional disconnection with transparency, teamwork and shared purpose.

The summit also reinforced the need to promote financially intelligent households, emotionally healthy relationships and resilient families. According to Adewale, the message of the summit was clear: love may bring two people together, but financial wisdom, intentional partnership and shared responsibility build a lasting legacy.