As a Catholic, I hold dear the life of Christ, the life of Mary and the lives of all the Saints. I firmly believe that we should seek to live like all those who have entered into heaven before us, especially Christ, because to seek the summum bonum (highest good) is to lead a life in communion with God according to His precepts.

Unfortunately there is one “tiny” problem with trying to follow the lives of Christ and the saints - I’m not one. Of course the ‘Confessions of St. Augustin,’ the Biblical story of the Prodigal Son and a fair number of priests have told me that some of our most devout members of heaven weren’t always on God’s “A” list. That, however, is not always as comforting to me as you may think. What I find more encouraging in my daily quest to lead a more Christian-centered life is to seek out other Catholics and Christians who are clearly on the path of good works and righteousness in today’s world.

I love seeking out people and groups who have found ways to express the Christian, specifically the Catholic faith. Finding these people and groups and how they have personally experienced Christ in their lives renews my own faith. One such couple that has recently peeked my interest is Joey Kerlin and Britt Shankle. Brought to my attention by none other than my dear friend, Cranky Catholic, this duo has created a stunningly blunt, but hilarious look into their marriage preparation. With less than a year to go until their January 2009 wedding, this Catholic couple decided to create a weekly podcast explaining ever aspect of their experiences on the road down the aisle.

With uproariously funny anecdotes that lighten the loving, but naturally intense feelings surrounding marriage preparation Joey and Britt create a basic down to earth marriage guide. Naturally Joey and Britt highlight their experiences as a Catholic couple, but after listening to their podcasts, I found that many of their stories benefited all Christians and indeed all people preparing for marriage, even people already married. One personal story with joking overtones that caught my attention was of their sponsor family:

“He and his wife and and his eight children are sort of our sponsor family for our engagement. They have been married about 15 years…and they have been kind enough to take us under their wing…and show us the loops of marriage…not loopholes, mind you, there’s no getting out of it!”

Even better is their story of how they met. Their story, as they themselves admit, is a bit long, but is well worth the ear-full. I won’t spill the rice; you just have to listen to it yourself. Their story is in the April 1st podcast with a continuation in the April 5th edition. The fact that they can joke and play openly in such a loving way shows that they are preparing themselves for a lasting relationship long past the day of “I do.” There is no mistake that Joey and Britt absolutely take the Sacrament of Marriage very seriously, which is why their advice is so pure of heart.

They have gone above and beyond their duties as Catholics in preparing for marriage and are gracious in sharing their experiences with us. It is truly a blessing to see couples taking marriage so seriously, but also with the ability to laugh at themselves. So often couples today take the easy route of divorce when marriage and life does not work the way they wanted it to. It is obvious that Joey and Britt have absolutely no intention of ever letting that idea take a foothold in their marriage.

For those of you who think you are already married and don’t need their advice? Think again! My darling Andrew and I will be celebrating year four of our marriage on June 26, and we are desperately listening to each podcast to make sure we didn’t miss any of Joey and Britt’s golden kernels.

Marriage is for life and we love that this beautiful young couple is starting early on their long, loving journey. My only prayer, other than Joey and Britt are blessed each and every day of their lives, is that the podcasts keep coming after January 24, 2009 - their wedding date - with many, many more years of excellent Christian advice for married couples!