Fighting for Your Marriage While Separated: A Practical Guide for the Brokenhearted

Fighting to restore love and peace in my marriage was so frustrating until I saw a video of a lady's testimony. It was a whole experience I never thought could have been possible. My partner and I are happily reunited in Love and harmony, All thanks to Ifa for the Help he rendered to me and my family. reach out to:( supremacylovespell01@ gmail. com ) You can still save your marriage or relationship. WhatsApp: [****]

I am going through a separation right now and currently have a restraining order on my husband. This book helped me so much. I need to break the cycle we were in and turn to Jesus. I am praying for marriage reconciliation but before we can have that, my husband and I need to be reconciled to God, our Father.

The book provides practical advice and emotional support, especially for those who may feel hopeless or stuck. The author shows the importance of personal healing and spiritual growth during separation, encouraging readers to focus on self-reflection and change rather than controlling their spouse's actions. There are no quick fixes but instead she offers long-term strategies for personal growth, reconciliation, and rebuilding trust. She shares stories from her own experience and from others who have faced separation, creating a relatable and encouraging narrative.

The step-by-step advice on communication, forgiveness, and setting boundaries is particularly helpful. It offers tools to manage conflict and rebuild intimacy, even when the relationship feels distant.
Rooks' faith-based perspective adds an element of hope, particularly for Christian readers, though the advice is applicable to anyone facing marital difficulties.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is separated from their spouse. Praying for all those who are struggling. God is in control and not you, so give it all to Him though painful.

There's no magic wand when you're hurting and in pain while separated. But there are comforting words from others that can help you feel better about your position. Actions speak louder than words and we all know that getting the opportunity to show these actions is what counts. I'm using some of the info in this book and it's helping me see a light at the end of the tunnel. Now all I can do is hope she's working for this as hard as I am.

My wife (Misty) and I are separated but this faith based book mentions multiple dynamics of why couples separate including a mirror image of our reasons. The writer (who herself was separated three years before reconciling) proceeds to discuss the root causes. She equips you with Godly advise on overcoming the strongholds in our life that lead to the separation. Having already benefited from faith based counseling this book reaffirmed many key points I already learned but also gives a fresh perspective on how to work toward reconciliation.

I never thought that I needed a book such as this during my time of separation from my spouse. It definitely gave me hope in all circumstances, reconciliation or divorce. It helped me to realize that I should focus on me, that I should focus on God and what he’s doing in my life, and not to put all my hope in faith into someone else’s decisions to be with me or not. We get one life to live, and it’s not going to be through waiting on a yes or a no from a spouse. This book saved my life.

My wife and I have been separated just over 2 months. This book has helped me sort through all the confusion and pain. It is a must have for anyone going through separation. Thank you so much Linda Rooks!! I really can't say enough about what a blessing your book is to me during this difficult time!

After being married for 16 years, my husband suddenly told me in 2018 that he no longer believed the Gospel and no longer loved me. It has been a very difficult 3 years since, but I’ve also learned a lot and grown much closer to God than ever before. One of the resources that has meant more than words can say to me throughout this process is this book by Linda Rooks. I highly recommend it!

Easy read. Good suggestions. Helping me through the process.

This book is for all couples before marriage, when it starts to fall apart, and after it falls apart. It teaches you so much about how to treat each other. This will help show you your failures and not just your spouse's if you read it with prayer and an open mind. No on is perfect after all.

This book spoke directly to the soul of my separation. I have given my marriage and spouse to God. I know he will perform a miracle whether restoration on my marriage or myself. Letting go is the hardest, but the best thing you can do in this situation and let God work.

It’s not just a book about restoring a marriage where there is presently a separation. As important as that is tiny manual is far bigger than that. Linda W. Rooks, author, Resource Member on the Troubled Marriages Team of the Association of Marriage and Family Ministries (AMFM), and leader of a marriage reconciliation ministry in Central Florida, has given a hopeful hand to many whose marriages are disarrayed and desperate in her 176 page paperback, “Fighting for Your Marriage While Separated: A Practical Guide for the Brokenhearted.” Though this little guide has marital separations in mind, much of the material applies to those whose spouses are shackled to addiction, who are abusive, or adulterous. But it is also useful for those who simply desire their marriages to be healthier and never fall off the cliff.

Rooks takes her readers, men and women, through the various stages and traps that accompany a limping or broken marriage. She deciphers the ploys a “remaining” spouse will be tempted to play, the maneuvers the leaving person may likely employ, as well as the traps that await both parties if they’re not watchful. The author conducts us through the various parts of the path: from separation, through present relationship, to friendship, and then potential reconciliation. But she does this discerningly and wisely, such as, forgiveness and trust are not identical, and so forth. Many of her categories are meaningful, like discussing those who are overbearing in a marriage, and those who are passive; or the difference between letting go and giving up. All her material is buttressed by plentiful real-life examples and personal stories. What adds muscle to the volume is that Rooks and her husband walked through this vale of tears in their own three-year separation many years back and have surfaced on the other side.

“Fighting for Your Marriage While Separated” should be in the libraries of every Christian minister and counselor. But those who are married, divorced, separated, or thinking about getting married will find valuable resources between these covers. It is easy to read, and substantive. Not only do I highly recommend the book, I have just handed off my copy to a person whose marriage is in serious trouble because I earnestly think they will find sustenance and support from its pages.

My thanks to New Growth Press who willingly handed me a copy of this volume at our denomination’s General Assembly in June 2019, when I asked for it. They laid down no stipulations. Therefore, the evaluations presented herein are mine, freely made and freely given.

Oh my gosh. This book is completely from Jesus. God is using Linda Rooks to encourage those stuck in and STRUGGLING through separation. As I read this book I understand, FINALLY, what God is wanting me to do. Linda explains and encourages, she gives the most wonderful advice (which I pull on every single day). Thank you Lord for Linda, for her husband, and for their ministry to help and love on others who are in separation. I just wish I could hug her, cry with her, have coffee with her.

I really appreciated this book, with it's honesty and wisdom! The personal stories throughout each of the chapters are encouraging that couples can work through their struggles and fight for their marriages even when separated. I really appreciated the wisdom on how to handle being separated with children and on what level to bring them in. This is an excellent book!

Linda Rooks shares her story of marital separation with vulnerability, but also with hope and encouragement. She gives practical advice that comes through the wisdom gained from her own experience with separation and reconciliation. Rooks's wisdom is evident all throughout the pages. She lovingly shares advice on several topics related to marriage and separation. She also encourages her readers to use this time to get closer to God. This book is for all married couples, not just those going through a separation.

This is one of those books I wish I would have read before going through something like separation and divorce. I think couples take for granted one another, not understanding that NO ONE is exempt from going through a marital crisis. I was in my 23rd year of marriage when all started to fall apart. To my understanding we were a Christian marriage and we had a Christina family along with our four children. Therefore, I never thought we could get a divorce. But no one knows exactly what goes on in each persons heart, and one day, all can finally burst out, and that's what happened to me and my ex husband. All came crashing down and we did not know how to handle our crisis... Linda's first book, Broken Heart on Hold, and Linda's 911 Ministry gave me the tools I needed to survive a marriage crisis, that I thought was going to kill me emotionally, physically, spiritually and psychologically. Although in my case, my marriage did not survive. However, God DID used this time and crisis in my life, to restore my personal life. I recommend Linda's new book to anyone who is eager to learn how to go through and survive a crisis such as a marriage separation and/or divorce. The depth and experience of her new writing on this topic, it's simply the "antibiotic" or "electric shock" for a marriage that is sick and dying! Take each word at heart and trust that God led you to this book because that's exactly what it is! (Love you Linda! God bless)

If you are in the midst of a challenging marital situation where you and your spouse are currently separated, it can be difficult to feel hope for the future most days, but Linda W. Rooks wants you to know that:

You are not alone…
It’s time to charge into battle.
Together, we are going to fight for your marriage.

In Fighting For Your Marriage While Separated: A Practical Guide For The Brokenhearted , Linda shares her story and the stories of others who have successfully navigated their way through the murky waters of marital separation and their biblical tips for finding your way back to one another and to resolving your differences – even in circumstances like hers where her husband walked out on her and swore there was no chance they would ever get back together again.

Linda does not whitewash her experiences. She acknowledges that each marriage presents its own unique set of circumstances and challenges to work through – but she also knows there are a lot of things that we can do (even though they won’t be easy) to facilitate the process). For instance, we can give our spouses the time and space they need to figure things out, set limits, and trust God for whatever happens.

Not every marriage will have a fairytale ending, but reading this book and employing some of Linda’s hard-earned wisdom may greatly tip the scales in your favor.

Nobody goes into a marriage with the hope it will not last. Yet, for too many couples, months and years of arguing and drifting apart head down toward the road of divorce. Before one arrives at that destination, however, a pitstop is made for separation. Whereas divorce finalizes failed hopes, separation is the critical juncture where decisions of direction need to be made. Couples need a roadmap to head in the right direction, a direction where marriages receive hope and are held together. It is for that purpose Linda W. Rooks has written Fighting for Your Marriage While Separated: A Practical Guide for the Brokenhearted.

Words of Counsel from Experience

As someone who went through a three-year separation herself, Mrs. Rooks speaks from experience and shares her story along the way as she provides counsel to those who are struggling through a marriage separation. She walks the reader through reacting to a separation (chapter 1) while also talking them through how to deal with communication with their spouse (chapters 2-4). Linda also reminds the reader of other relationships in the person’s life, particularly learning to draw on others as outside help (chapter 5) and realizing and protecting a child’s heart through such a season (chapter 6). The strongest part of the book is where the author emphasizes the importance of prayer throughout this process (chapters 7, 10). Numerous pieces of advice are given on how to handle the time of separation, fighting for and being wise in possible reconciliation, and coping with the reality of divorce. In the end, the point of the book shows fighting for marriage while separated means holding onto God and understanding hope is found in Him and not a spouse.

Practical and General Counsel

From the opening email letters and stories to the “Heart Work” questions and exercises at the end of each chapter, Fighting for Your Marriage While Separated is practical. The discussion in chapter 2 on assertive and passive tendencies provides helpful counsel into understanding some communication problems. Likewise, the topic of chapter 13 “Knowing If It Is Time To Reconcile” shows a spouse who is truly humble and willing to make sacrifices to reconcile will be transparent with their spouse and accountable to other godly people in their life.For all of the practical help present, the book does seem to be lacking counsel that is biblical and robust practical at times. For all the talk about God in the book, there does not seem to be as much emphasis on the gospel. One of the biggest recommendations the author gives in the book is for program called “Retrouvaille”, which is sponsored by the Catholic church but welcoming to all faiths. While there is no doubt the program helped the author and her spouse’s marriage, in a book written particularly to Christians, this recommendation is found lacking. To be fair, this book does reference Jesus and even says “why we all need Jesus” (chapter 6) but showing how the gospel informs separated couples to hope is not focused on in this book. Chapter 10 does bring in a gospel response but more discussion on how the person and work of Christ impacts marriages was not in view.

The book offers other recommendations at times too, which are more often general than specific. There may be an encouragement to read Christian books or listen to Bible teaching without giving specific titles and speakers. While this is not necessarily a point of critique, it is good for a reader to know that so they can decide or ask what other resources to turn to.

These criticisms aside, if you are currently facing a marriage separation and are struggling with how to respond to what you are dealing with, then maybe Fighting for Your Marriage While Separated could be the practical and general counsel you could use for starters.

I received this book from New Growth Press in exchange for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own and are my honest review of the book.

Linda Rooks, “Fighting for Your Marriage While Separated,” is an incredibly wise and practical book that can offer hope to couples struck by the tsunami of pain, confusion, and disconnection. I highly recommend this book to couples looking for a biblical, down-to-earth, and life-giving guide for couples on their journey toward restoration!