Couples’ night out
CHURCH’S ‘DOUBLE DATE’ EVENTS ENCOURAGE MARRIED COUPLES TO INTERACT WITH OTHERS
About 320 married couples set out for a date one recent Sunday night — and they all ended up at church.
The spouses were participating in “Double Date Nite OKC,” a popular program offered at Crossings Community Church, 14600 N Portland.
Andy Rauschkolb, pastor of young adults and community groups, said the church started the program as “Date Nite OKC” and offered couples an opportunity to bring their children to the church, where the kids could enjoy fun activities while their parents enjoyed an evening out.
As part of the recent “Double Date Nite” event, couples were encouraged to join another couple for an evening out.
Rauschkolb said the church helped pair some couples for those who didn’t have a “double date” but wanted one. He said about 40 couples signed up for such a “blind” double date.
“They just wanted to leave it in God’s hands,” Rauschkolb said, smiling.
Rauschkolb said Matt Anderson, the church’s associate preaching pastor, saw the program modeled at another church and thought the idea had much merit.
Crossings held the first date night program in March 2015 and about 200 couples participated, Rauschkolb said. The recent evening out, held in late March, was the third.
To encourage fun and meaningful conversation, each participating couple is given a packet with questions and a set of tasks. The packets include ideas to encourage fun interaction such as taking zany pictures together at a photo booth at the church, taking a “smooching selfie” with a red paper heart or a picture with the restaurant waiter. Couples are encouraged to share their photos and insights via social media, using the hashtag #dateniteokc.
“We’ve had an absolutely overwhelmingly
positive response, because what we learned is that a lot our couple don’t go on dates,” Rauschkolb said.
Making it work
He said couples indicated several reasons for not going on dates, including lack of time and lack of trusted child care.
Church leaders decided to help alleviate this by offering food, games and youth-oriented activities for children at the church.
At the recent event, children enjoyed inflatables, games and pizza.
In keeping with the “double” theme, children were treated to a Double Stuffed Oreo bar where they could dunk the cookies in caramel, chocolate and other sweet toppings.
They also enjoyed the antics of costumed characters “Thing One” and “Thing Two” from the Dr. Seuss “Cat in the Hat” books.
For those with time constraints and busy schedules, the date nights are promoted well in advance so couples are able to plan for them.
“We wanted to emphasize that marriage is important, and we wanted to encourage our marriages to stay fresh and vibrant,” Rauschkolb said.
‘Our church cares’
Steve and Olivia Waid joined their friends Jenny and Jon Bennett for a double date.
The couples said they are neighbors but, because of their busy lifestyles and children, aren’t able to connect as often as they’d like.
The
“Double
Date Night” offered a perfect opportunity to get together for a meal at a local restaurant.
“The way they set it up with these packets, we know we’re going to think outside the box,” said Steve Waid, 40.
His wife said the child care was a huge plus.
“Knowing our kids are going to have a quality time is great,” said Olivia Waid, 39.
“I’m just so grateful that our church cares about marriages.”
Jon Bennett, 39, said his parents’ small Boston church heard about Crossings’ “Date Nite” program and implemented at their own church.
Meanwhile, Michael Bowling, 39, and his wife, Ursula, 38, said they planned to enjoy an evening at home because they don’t get opportunities for alone time, even at their own residence.
“We have four small children, so we need all the dates we can get,” Ursula Bowling said, laughing.
“We love that the church is encouraging us to have a good marriage.”