Super Saturday Event to Equip Engaged Couples
Danny Panter, Associate Pastor at First Baptist Church of San Antonio, and his wife of 19 years, Anna, who works with San Antonio Marriage Initiative, have invested the past six years revitalizing their church’s growing marriage ministry.
The ministry, Marriage Strong, exists to provide strategic and engaging opportunities for every couple to enrich their marriage. One unique part of the ministry is “Super Saturday,” a one-day premarital counseling event for engaged couples. This year, it will be hosted May 15, in person. Super Saturday is a fun and informative day designed to help San Antonio couples start their marriages off on a firm foundation.
“Our goal is to reach couples who would not typically consider or have access to 8 weeks of gospel-centered pre-marital counseling,” Anna said. The event will offer practical tools and conversation starters to help engaged couples move forward together in their marriages.
Couples who reserve their spot for the event receive access to the online SYMBIS (Save Your Marriage Before it Starts) assessment tool. Each participant completes the assessment individually prior to arriving. During the retreat, facilitators will help them analyze their results and teach them how to work together to maximize each other’s strengths for the good of the marriage.
The Panters staffed a booth at San Antonio’s Bridal Expo in January to get the word out to engaged couples.
“We remind couples they are spending thousands of dollars on their wedding day, and we ask them to consider investing in their marriage after the wedding day by signing up for this one-day event.” Anna added. “We talked to people about marriage resources - we just want their marriages to start out strong.”
As an added incentive, couples who complete the Super Saturday event earn a certificate that qualifies them for a $60 discount toward the cost of their $80 marriage license. Marriage Strong Ministry is a Twogether in Texas program partner, a statewide initiative that encourages couples to obtain premarital counseling and offers the rebate.
The Panters always look forward to this special, semiannual event. “It is always interesting to see how God uses this day in the lives of engaged couples,” Anna said. Our facilitators are fun, practical and prayerful. The facilitators of the event share unique personal stories that relate to the season of the relationship.
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