“If you want to live a good life, it takes work.” — Brian Buffini One of the most common questions people ask Brian and Beverly Buffini is, “What’s the secret to a long and happy marriage?” On the surface, Brian and Beverly may seem like they come from different worlds, but their experiences and commitment to each other and their faith has made them stronger. Together, they’ve endured both success and setbacks in their personal and professional lives; but at the end of the day, they have the support of one another and their family. In this episode, Brian and Beverly discuss how they met, their experiences as an interracial couple, and what they’ve done to help them build a successful marriage over the past 26 years. You’ll learn the importance of giving of yourself in any relationship, why pride is the heart of conflict and the difference between remorse and repentance. Whether you’re going through a rough time in a relationship or you want to keep it strong, this is an episode you don’t want to miss.   Inspirational quotes from today’s interview “It was love at first sight for me the day I met her.” — Brian Buffini “I grew up in a culture where we didn’t see color, so we didn’t go into our relationship looking at that. The biggest question we received was, ‘what about your children?’ and we said ‘what about our children?’ What people are asking is, ‘what about your differences?’ It’s more than color when you get married.” — Beverly Buffini “Consider who you’re marrying and your love will grow from that if it’s meant to be.” — Beverly Buffini “We developed our mission statement for our relationship and our family. We revisit it all the time.” — Brian Buffini “I didn’t realize I’d have to give my life to get my life back, and that’s what I think in the ‘me’ culture, you’ll keep lists and records of wrong and what you’ve done. It’s an accounting exercise.” — Brian Buffini “Where we’ve had major breakthroughs in our relationship is to never question one another’s motives.” — Brian Buffini “We try our best to understand each other as opposed to be understood.” — Beverly Buffini “There’s a great phrase: Intimacy—Into Me You See.” — Brian Buffini “Most human beings want to love and be loved but we make it difficult to do so.” — Brian Buffini “The biggest thing is to be intentional.” — Beverly Buffini “If you want to live a good life, it takes work.” — Brian Buffini “A lot of our rocky times came from pride. It’s hard to get to that point when you think you’re right. To resolve that is to be humble at times, consider and understand the other person, and it’s work because we really want to do it our way.” — Beverly Buffini “Forgiveness is not saying you’re sorry. There’s a difference between remorse and repentance.” — Brian Buffini “Human beings do better together. It’s harder to work through our stuff with ourselves. There’s stuff that hasn’t gone outside our relationship because of that trust.” — Brian Buffini “We didn’t always grow at the same pace in the same way at the same time. But we were patient with one another.” —Brian Buffini “I can’t change him. He can’t change me. We can influence one another, but not change one another.” — Beverly Buffini “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” 1 Corinthians 13 “Don’t just read it on your wedding day; read it every morning.” — Brian Buffini “The happiness of life is made up of minute fractions—the little, soon forgotten charities of a kiss or a smile, a kind look or a heartfelt compliment.” — Samuel Taylor Coleridge. “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh answer stirs up anger. How we communicate to one another carries the day no matter what the situation.” — Beverly Buffini “This