Ministry Couple Share Naked Truths About Marriage

   

When their eyes met in college theater class 22 years ago, Ashley and Dave Willis could not have realized their journey would lead them to work in marriage ministry together. They’ve since become a highly recognized voice for Christ-centered marriages as representatives of MarriageToday (now known as XO). Founded by Jimmy and Karen Evans in 1994, the largest marriage focused ministry in the United States is devoted to helping couples thrive in strong and fulfilling marriages. The Willises reach millions of couples seeking marriage enrichment via their blogs, podcasts, television broadcasts, speaking events, and vlogs. Their weekly Naked Marriage Podcast ranks in the Apple top 35 Christianity Podcasts in the United States.

The podcast “offers helpful advice for couples both inside and outside of the bedroom,” and is “dedicated to undressing the truth about sex, intimacy and lifelong love. The concerns and questions most couples have in marriage often go unspoken, until now. Hosts Dave and Ashley Willis bring wisdom, vulnerability, and humor to even the toughest marriage topics,” according to their website.

“It’s been an amazing journey, and looking back, we can see how God has worked all the pieces of our journey together to prepare us for the work we’re doing now. Even those early experiences in theater have helped us communicate together as a team on different stages,” Ashley wrote. The couple shares their marriage tips, tricks, and naked truths at all XO events hosted by MarriageToday. They started out encouraging and counseling couples in the church Dave pastored.

“We saw so many hurting marriages, and it created a burden in us to do more, but we didn’t know where to start. We decided to create a Facebook page (since it was free, and we had no money) and called the page ‘Marriage.’ It was going to be a place for us to encourage couples, but we didn’t really have a vision that it would grow to something large. The page eventually outgrew our wildest expectations, and it opened the door for us to start blogging, making videos, writing books, and leading conferences.” www.facebook.com/strongermarriages currently counts 1.2 million followers. XO Marriage noticed the Willises’ work and invited them to speak at a conference.

“We all felt a connection to each other right away and eventually joined the XO team full-time in 2018, which has been such a rewarding experience. As part of the team at XO, we’re able to connect with far more people than we ever could have done on our own. Plus, it’s a lot of fun being part of such a great team,” they report.

“We get to help couples and give people hope. We get to see marriages and families restored, and we even see people come to faith in Christ for the first time. We truly feel like we have the best job in the world and feel very blessed to be able to do it with such an incredible team,” Ashley added. 

“We love the live events we do with XO Marriage. We enjoy teaching from the stage, but even more, we enjoy meeting people afterwards. We’ve heard so many inspiring stories from couples at these events. Meeting people and hearing their testimonies is the most rewarding part of what we do,” Dave said.

The titles of the Willises’ podcast and books, The Naked Marriage, Naked and Healthy, catch the eye of people searching for marriage resources.  They explain the deeper meaning behind the title.

“Nakedness is a picture of transparency. It’s the essence of vulnerability and honesty. It’s showing that we have nothing to hide from each other. It’s a removal of everything that separates us. It’s taking off anything we’re tempted to hide behind. It’s an invitation to be fully known by each other in the intimate oneness God designed every marriage to possess. God’s first description of marriage in Genesis tells us they were ‘naked and unashamed,’ and we believe that’s still his perfect plan for every marriage,” Ashley said. 

“We believe this kind of transparency and ‘nakedness’ is so paramount to healthy marriages, that we’ve made it our ministry’s core message. Our podcast is called The Naked Marriage Podcast and our first book was titled The Naked Marriage. This isn’t just to be a gimmick, since the word ‘naked’ does seem to grab attention, (although it has definitely helped people discover our resources). This is an intentional refocusing on God’s original plan for marriage in a world that has lost sight of it.”

The Willises remain amazed and humbled by the reach of the podcast. “In our 160 episodes (and counting) we’ve had some great interviews and important conversations about nearly every marriage topic imaginable,” they said. The podcast is free and available on-demand. www.NakedMarriagePodcast.com.

“We receive messages from listeners from all over the world. What seems to resonate with them is that we talk about the ‘awkward’ subjects related to marriage without making it feel awkward. Especially for Christians, so many of us grew up in atmospheres where we didn’t feel like we had a safe place to talk about sex and other intimate topics related to marriage. We’re trying to create a safe space for those conversations, and it seems to be resonating with people.”

When asked why they believe their message touches so many, they responded, “We just set out to be ourselves and to help as many people as we can. As we’ve shared our message, we’ve been surprised that so many people find it so unique. We’re just glad to know it’s helping people.”

It’s easy to search for relevant content from their podcast, books or articles by keyword or topic at www.xomarriage.com. The Willises also have published several resources for parents – another topic with which they are intimately acquainted, as they are raising four boys.

Their most recent book, Naked and Healthy: Uncover the Lifestyle Your Mind, Body, Spirit, and Marriage Need, debuted in 2021. Ashley and Dave “share their own health and marriage battles to reveal why your personal well-being and the health of your marriage are inextricably connected,” from XO Marriage.

“We believe that a healthy marriage requires two spouses who are both committed to their own health (mentally, physically and spiritually) and also encouraging health in their spouse. Our new book highlights many stories to help readers create healthy habits. Our habits are what form our life and our marriage,” they said. “In addition to the health tips, we also share a lot of funny stories about times when we’ve made the wrong choices in these areas. In all our resources, we don’t teach from a place of being the ‘experts’ who have it all figured out, but rather as the ‘encouragers’ who are on the journey with you. Our favorite chapter in the book shares many of our misadventures and is titled ‘In Thickness and in Health.’”

In their quest to address topics most relevant to couples, the Willises also wrote The Counterfeit Climax, releasing 2022. The book addresses God’s design for a fulfilling sex life. Ashley and Dave speak compassionately to people in all stages of relationships who desire to release sexual burdens and “restore or deepen intimacy with their spouse.”

“Our world has largely abandoned God’s original plan for sex and replaced it with counterfeit forms of love and sex,” from XO Marriage. “It’s time to confront all the lies the world has fed us about sex, romance, and relationships and pursue God’s design for the most fulfilling marriage and sex life.”

The Willises remain passionate about healthy relationships.

“Jesus taught that the most important part of the Bible (and life in general) was to love God and love your neighbor. In other words…relationships. A healthy relationship with God and with people is what life is all about, and marriage is the most important of all human relationships. It’s the foundation for all the others, so that’s where we focus.”

They credit Jesus as the cornerstone of all their work. “The more we love Him, the more capacity we will have to love each other. The more we align our lives with His teachings, the more our lives and marriages will have peace and health,” Dave said. 

The couples encourage everyone to play his/her part in building stronger marriages. “The world needs more people doing this work,” they said.  “We’re praying for those who are doing what they can to encourage other couples and working on their own marriage, too.” Ashley and David are active on social media and invite marriage champions and individuals to connect on Instagram @DaveAndAshleyWillis or at www.DaveAndAshleyWillis.com.