The Marriage Weekend Offers a Truly Unique Experience
This is not your typical marriage conference or retreat. . . its unique structure allows you to connect with your spouse and other marriage-positive couples. It is thought provoking, encouraging and enriching. It is a time to relax and be a couple without the responsibilities of work and children for a few days.
At a typical conference, attendees sit in rows to listen and take notes. At The Marriage Weekend, we gather around tables with three other couples from different generations of marriage. . . think of it as mentoring groups. We worship together, learn from our speaker, and then have discussion at our tables. The weekend intentionally builds in plenty of free time for you to be with your spouse and hang out with other couples if you choose.
The Marriage Weekend is so unique that even Gary Thomas, author of Sacred Marriage and a past speaker at the event, remarked that he could tell something was special the moment he walked into the room. He was struck by how effortlessly people were connecting and genuinely enjoying one another's company.
Come join us for a time of worship, growth, connecting, relaxing and refreshing.
2025
Dr. Chris Dinwiddie
Dr. Dinwiddie is a nationally certified counselor and a professor of psychology at JBU and previously to SBU for 16 years. His professional interest is building quality marriages, especially in the application of grace and forgiveness in marriage. Chris is married to Ashley, and they have a high school aged daughter, Robin.
BA Langston University (Psychology)
MA Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Marriage and Family Counseling)
MA Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Religious Education)
PhD Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Psychology)
I’m New to The Marriage Weekend
Welcome!
We are so excited to have you join us for your first Marriage Weekend (MW)! This weekend will be filled with lots of fun, fellowship, and growing as a couple. We want to share some information with you so you’ll have a better understanding of some things on the schedule.
Friday Check-in - Some couples get to Branson a little earlier, grab dinner and check-in to their rooms before 6:30 pm. The conference room doors will open at 6:30pm! At this time, you can drop off the snack you were assigned to bring for sharing. If you don’t remember what you are supposed to bring – no worries, look for the email from Darla Walkup. If you did not receive an email from Darla for snack sign-up, check your spam and/or call her at 417-399-7788. During this time, you’ll
also find your name tag and table number for the weekend. You may notice a color on your name tag, this simply indicates the number of years you and your spouse have been married, which helps the team create table groups. Your table group should have at least one couple from each group of years married. Enjoy your table group, and actively participate in table discussion - you’ll glean so much from one another!
~Hotel Continental Breakfast opens at 6:30 am~
Saturday Free Time - After our morning sessions, you’ll notice free time for the remainder of the day on Saturday. This time is meant for you to enjoy. Some couples choose to spend time alone with their spouse, while other couples choose to spend the afternoon with a group. If you would like to fellowship with other couples, but are not sure of who to join, let someone on the MW Team know and they will get you connected with others! When planning your free time, here are a few fun things to do: get lunch, go for a hike, shop at the outlet mall, explore the Branson Landing, go to the Board Game Cafe, or play mini golf.
Saturday Game Night - Game night is optional! You do not have to attend, but it is always a tremendous amount of fun that you may not want to miss. Our time together begins at 7:30 pm in the conference room for an organized game. Oh, and there will be prizes!! After the organized game, several couples stay in the conference room to continue playing board games that they’ve brought from home. If this interests you, bring your favorite game and invite others to play too!
Sunday Check-Out & Testimonies - On the schedule, you will notice a long break around 10:00 am. Some couples want to enjoy getting to sleep a bit later, so a longer break is provided for you to return to your room, pack your things and check-out. After the long break, we’ll return to the conference room to wrap up the weekend with worship and testimonies. Testimony time will be an open mic style, so if you feel comfortable, share how the weekend has impacted or encouraged you. We look forward to our weekend together and serving you in any way possible!
The MW Team,
Keith & Charity Kelly
Bill & Darla Walkup
Joshua & Ashley Caviness
Jordan & Katlyn Stephens
Bret & Courtney Stanford
Kevin and Katie Kelly
Weekend Schedule
F R I D A Y
6:30 pm Doors Open! Drop off snacks & socialize a bit
6:50 pm Find Your Table & meet your people
7:00 pm - 10:00 pm MW Kick-off | Worship | Session 1
S A T U R D A Y
8:30 am Session 2 | Break | Session 3 | Break | Session 4
12:30 pm Enjoy your afternoon!
7:30 pm Game Night Activity (+ other table games)
S U N D A Y
8:30 am Session 5
10:00 am Long Break (check out of hotel rooms)
10:30 am Music | Devotion | Testimonies
12:30 pm Clean Up | Go Home
Contact
Questions or concerns? Let any of us know!
Team:
Keith & Charity Kelly
Bill & Darla Walkup
Joshua & Ashley Caviness
Jordan & Katlyn Stephens
Bret & Courtney Stanford
Kevin and Katie Kelly
Copyright First Baptist Church of Bolivar 2026