Marriage Advance

By Chad Robichaux –

My wife Kathy and I are blessed to facilitate another upcoming marriage conference! We are happy to share our story in hopes that it will help others improve their marriages and be all that God calls them to be as a couple!
As a former Special Operations Force Recon Marine, I served eight deployments in the Afghanistan War on Terror. I am a Board Certified Pastoral Counselor with American Association of Christian Counselors specializing in PTSd, Trauma Care, and Marriage and Family Counseling. After serving my country, I returned home and was personally diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSd). Through the accolades of my military service and the notoriety that later came from being a top ranked Professional MMA Fighter, few saw beneath the surface, where my reality was brokenness and despair.

Subsequently, my wife Kathy and I spent the next 3 years in a downward spiral nearly ending in divorce. In fact, in the face of that adversity, Kathy and I became convinced there was no hope for our marriage. It was sad time for us, but I was ready to give up on our marriage before we ever had the chance to experience the marriage God had planned for us. Actually, when all seemed lost, Kathy’s prayers and willingness to fight, to NOT throw in the towel, would lift me back to my feet and help me engage in the fight for the most important things in our life… our faith, our marriage, our family, and MY legacy. Thank God this wasn’t the end of OUR story and it does not have to be the END of YOUR story. As long as you never give up and never stop trying to find innovative solutions to build a stronger marriage and seek to discover the marriage as God intended, you can overcome your challenges.
Ours’ is a story of tragedy-to-triumph in the victory over divorce. It shines a spotlight on the very real struggles our military families face in returning home from combat. Whether or not you served in the military, the path that Kathy and I found to hope and healing for our family, is available for each couple through God’s Word and Promises. We now dedicated to share our story of victory through Christ to mentor others through the ministry of Mighty Oaks Warrior Programs (a 501c3 non-profit effort). We are now committed to helping America’s military warriors and their families who are suffering from the “unseen wounds” of combat such as PTSD. Our efforts are aimed at developing and implementing interventions with the ultimate goal of reducing the reported veteran suicide rate from 22 per day and the astronomical veteran divorce rate of over 80%. Kathy and I have now been married for over twenty years and have three teenage children. We have developed curriculums and refined methodologies to lead others out of despair and into victory through Biblical Truths, by walking others into aligning themselves with the lives, marriages, and legacies in which God intended us to live.
I know that struggling against the odds can be difficult and it is always easier to give up and surrender than to endure the hardships that comes with holding on. But, success can only come to those who find the fortitude to stay in the fight. When you give up, there is no chance of success. Kathy and I ultimately want to help you build a stronger marriage, that will always be “advancing” toward the ultimate success God had in mind when YOU said, “I DO!”