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Classic Marriage: Staying in Love as Your Odometer Climbs
Classic Marriage is a fun-filled marriage book with practical tips and tools for communication and a long-term commitment.
There will be moments in your relationship where you haul yourselves back to “the garage” for work. Like a trusty classic truck, a classic marriage needs regular upkeep.
As the odometer climbs, everyday challenges have probably affected your communication, romantic feelings, and even your commitment. Michelle and Phil have been there, and they want to help you experience wedded bliss well into the golden years.
In this book, you’ll
Biblical, faith-based resources from 30-year marriage veterans.Honesty and humor from the front seat of adventure with Michelle and Phil.Tips to get under the hood and keep your marriage on the road to a long future.Tune-up questions in every chapter to work on your communication.Tools for how to tinker with overheated emotions and repair broken hearts.Fun tips and witty comments from Phil – with a chance of dad jokes. A timeless relationship book for couples that offers practical advice for creating a fun, fulfilling, and forever love story.
There will be moments in your relationship where you haul yourselves back to “the garage” for work. Like a trusty classic truck, a classic marriage needs regular upkeep.
As the odometer climbs, everyday challenges have probably affected your communication, romantic feelings, and even your commitment. Michelle and Phil have been there, and they want to help you experience wedded bliss well into the golden years.
In this book, you’ll
Biblical, faith-based resources from 30-year marriage veterans.Honesty and humor from the front seat of adventure with Michelle and Phil.Tips to get under the hood and keep your marriage on the road to a long future.Tune-up questions in every chapter to work on your communication.Tools for how to tinker with overheated emotions and repair broken hearts.Fun tips and witty comments from Phil – with a chance of dad jokes. A timeless relationship book for couples that offers practical advice for creating a fun, fulfilling, and forever love story.
281 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 15, 2020
10 people are currently reading
5 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 10, 2020
Classic Marriage: Staying in Love as your Odometer Climbs is not just another book about marriage. Classic Marriage takes a look at words like romance, soul mates, forgiveness, covenant, and your spouse’s eulogy. What? A eulogy? Yes, and so much more. Are you one who dislikes reading? Hang on for the ride, ‘cause Phil and Michelle Rayburn invite you to look at the Jeep engine with the tranny pulled out (that’s the transmission). Phil’s dry sense of humor adds commentary and Michelle provides illustrations of car upkeep, home remodel, boat anchors and piano tuning.
Michelle and Phil Rayburn have been married 30 years and wrote the book to cheerlead others on the journey. Michelle says, “I want our story to help someone else hang on for dear life when they consider letting go. You can do it with God’s help.”
Classic Marriage takes a look at the cost of improvements needed for maintenance. Not in terms of dollar signs but heart changes of humility and selflessness. When pride is set aside, the result is priceless. Instead of surviving marriage, the Rayburns want you to thrive, and provide realistic conversations about the daily choices to love your spouse instead of focusing on piles of dishes, laundry, and junk in the back yard.
Michelle describes the marriage-covenant relationship as a bond, much like super glue. When broken, both surfaces are torn apart in the process. Instead, she offers the alternative to see marriage as ministry to each other, to offer forgiveness in the trenches of life, and grace to walk together.
Michelle says, “Over the course of thirty years, I have had plenty of moments where I wanted to do the nice thing. I wanted to apologize. I wanted to make the first move. But I didn’t want it bad enough to set aside my pride to follow through with action. Every time, it was an opportunity lost.
“Pride is a liar. It looks like a shell that would protect a vulnerable heart from getting hurt, but instead it extends the hurt and blocks healing.”
Don’t let pride keep you from cherishing your spouse today. If we wait to make a list of all the things we appreciate in a eulogy, it will be too late to affirm your spouse. Now is the time!
Disclaimer: I received a copy of Classic Marriage from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Michelle and Phil Rayburn have been married 30 years and wrote the book to cheerlead others on the journey. Michelle says, “I want our story to help someone else hang on for dear life when they consider letting go. You can do it with God’s help.”
Classic Marriage takes a look at the cost of improvements needed for maintenance. Not in terms of dollar signs but heart changes of humility and selflessness. When pride is set aside, the result is priceless. Instead of surviving marriage, the Rayburns want you to thrive, and provide realistic conversations about the daily choices to love your spouse instead of focusing on piles of dishes, laundry, and junk in the back yard.
Michelle describes the marriage-covenant relationship as a bond, much like super glue. When broken, both surfaces are torn apart in the process. Instead, she offers the alternative to see marriage as ministry to each other, to offer forgiveness in the trenches of life, and grace to walk together.
Michelle says, “Over the course of thirty years, I have had plenty of moments where I wanted to do the nice thing. I wanted to apologize. I wanted to make the first move. But I didn’t want it bad enough to set aside my pride to follow through with action. Every time, it was an opportunity lost.
“Pride is a liar. It looks like a shell that would protect a vulnerable heart from getting hurt, but instead it extends the hurt and blocks healing.”
Don’t let pride keep you from cherishing your spouse today. If we wait to make a list of all the things we appreciate in a eulogy, it will be too late to affirm your spouse. Now is the time!
Disclaimer: I received a copy of Classic Marriage from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
July 27, 2024
excellent book on marriage. While aimed at the long-term marriage, my husband and I found plenty of inspiration and encouragement in our own three-year marriage. My husband loved Michelle's husband's insight.
September 25, 2020
Having been married 29 years (the authors beat us by 8 months!), I've bought and read my share of marriage books. Some are very serious and you feel as though each chapter is a sermon. Some are just plain corny and you feel like you are watching an episode of HeeHaw (for rural folk) or Lawrence Welk (for the city folk). And much like Goldilocks, I was always searching for something "just right."
And now I've found it: a book with honesty about mistakes, authenticity about weaknesses, creativity for keeping love alive, and a sense of humor sprinkled throughout. Phil and Michelle have created a clever book with parallels between caring for and maintaining a classic car (a hobby that Phil is particularly good at!) and the care and maintenance required to rebuild or restore a marriage.
Classic Marriage is really like two books in one. The main part of the book will most likely be read by wives (or read jointly by husband and wife). Realizing that not every husband has the time (or interest) in reading (much less reading about marriage), the authors included little speech balloons sprinkled throughout the text. These are basically a running commentary by Phil in which he cuts right to the bottom line for husbands.
The book is divided into five main parts:
* Forever (those early days when marriage begins)
* Family (parenting years)
* Fun (joining hobbies and maintaining the spark in marriage)
* Faith (the lubricant that smooths relationships)
* Future (those sunset years when break downs may increase)
I loved the design of the book, starting with the cover (featuring an adorable picture of Phil and Michelle), followed by the clever chapter titles (printed as license plates), and the end of chapter wrap-up (appropriately called, "Tune Up Time"), offering things to discuss as a couple. I highly recommend this book as a gift for newlyweds, new parents, or even empty nesters. There is truly something for everyone--at least for those who care about improving their marriage. If that describes you, then grab yourself a copy and start enjoying the benefits of a fully restored Classic Marriage!
(Disclaimer: I received a free digital copy of Classic Marriage for the purpose of review. No other compensation was received.)
And now I've found it: a book with honesty about mistakes, authenticity about weaknesses, creativity for keeping love alive, and a sense of humor sprinkled throughout. Phil and Michelle have created a clever book with parallels between caring for and maintaining a classic car (a hobby that Phil is particularly good at!) and the care and maintenance required to rebuild or restore a marriage.
Classic Marriage is really like two books in one. The main part of the book will most likely be read by wives (or read jointly by husband and wife). Realizing that not every husband has the time (or interest) in reading (much less reading about marriage), the authors included little speech balloons sprinkled throughout the text. These are basically a running commentary by Phil in which he cuts right to the bottom line for husbands.
The book is divided into five main parts:
* Forever (those early days when marriage begins)
* Family (parenting years)
* Fun (joining hobbies and maintaining the spark in marriage)
* Faith (the lubricant that smooths relationships)
* Future (those sunset years when break downs may increase)
I loved the design of the book, starting with the cover (featuring an adorable picture of Phil and Michelle), followed by the clever chapter titles (printed as license plates), and the end of chapter wrap-up (appropriately called, "Tune Up Time"), offering things to discuss as a couple. I highly recommend this book as a gift for newlyweds, new parents, or even empty nesters. There is truly something for everyone--at least for those who care about improving their marriage. If that describes you, then grab yourself a copy and start enjoying the benefits of a fully restored Classic Marriage!
(Disclaimer: I received a free digital copy of Classic Marriage for the purpose of review. No other compensation was received.)
February 24, 2026
Classic Marriage: Staying in Love as Your Odometer Climbs by Michelle and Phil Rayburn is a refreshingly practical and faith-based guide for couples seeking to nurture a lasting, joyful marriage. Drawing on 30 years of experience, the authors provide actionable tools and relatable insights that help couples maintain communication, intimacy, and commitment as life’s challenges arise.
What makes this book particularly engaging is its approachable style, blending humor, honesty, and biblical guidance. From “tune-up questions” to tips for repairing emotional rifts, the Rayburns use the metaphor of a classic vehicle to illustrate how marriages, like cars, require regular care and attention to thrive over time. The practical exercises and witty commentary make it both enjoyable and meaningful for readers of all stages of marriage.
Classic Marriage is an excellent resource for couples committed to long-term happiness, offering tools, inspiration, and encouragement for creating a marriage that stays strong and vibrant through every season of life.
What makes this book particularly engaging is its approachable style, blending humor, honesty, and biblical guidance. From “tune-up questions” to tips for repairing emotional rifts, the Rayburns use the metaphor of a classic vehicle to illustrate how marriages, like cars, require regular care and attention to thrive over time. The practical exercises and witty commentary make it both enjoyable and meaningful for readers of all stages of marriage.
Classic Marriage is an excellent resource for couples committed to long-term happiness, offering tools, inspiration, and encouragement for creating a marriage that stays strong and vibrant through every season of life.
January 9, 2022
Great timing to read this as my wife and I enter the Empty Nester phase of our marriage. Great advice in here I could’ve used when I was a newlywed, too!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews