Faith and Fertility: NFP Strengthens Catholic Marriage
Tucked into the rugged beauty of Colorado, Brooke and John Fischer’s life is anything but ordinary. With four energetic sons and a shared love for the outdoors, they balance family life with dedicated service to their church’s marriage preparation ministry. The Fischers are passionate about mentoring engaged couples and sharing how NFP strengthens Catholic marriage. What started as a personal health journey and a desire for authentic intimacy has become a cornerstone of their relationship and ministry.
Motivation to Teach
Recalling their own marriage prep experience, they remember feeling a little disappointed because NFP was not really a topic that was covered. That is what sparked a desire to volunteer in their parish to help engaged couples in marriage preparation. “We thought, we want to do it differently so couples have someone to talk to because this could be a huge concern. That really motivated us, once we had several years of marriage behind us, to contribute within the Church.”
Prior to marriage, Brooke had learned the Creighton Model of NFP while looking for an alternative to birth control for her amenorrhea (not having menstrual cycles after having started them). Through medical advice, she was put on progesterone and encouraged to gain weight, inducing her cycles to return. “I learned a ton about the female body and biomarkers available through charting and what it can tell us about health,” she says. “It opened up a whole different world of understanding my body.”
Working Together
For John, being a good partner to Brooke meant learning NFP too before marriage. “It’s my job to understand that system as well as she does,” he says. “I feel strongly since we’ve started NFP that anytime we’re making a decision, we make it together. We lay the information out, talk, and then we both feel good.”
While both had a strong grasp of NFP’s logistics heading into marriage, John says that fully understanding the “why” behind it took time. Now, the Fischers pass along their years of NFP experience at marriage retreats and through couple mentoring. “We don’t sugarcoat anything, we tell them the struggles and what has been absolutely wonderful,” they say. “It’s been fun to share because it’s helped our appreciation of what NFP’s done for our marriage.” For example, NFP prompts transparent conversations, they say, including regular check-ins about finances, stress, and health.
Another benefit relates to intimacy. “People are concerned about short periods of abstinence,” they say. “Those really aren’t that big a deal. What they force you to do is find other ways to love each other. That has really strengthened our relationship.” They both agree, “It’s been so good for our relationship; it’s had so many subtle benefits.”
Knowledge Is Key
After their fourth son’s birth, Brooke and John expanded their NFP knowledge. They learned the Marquette Method and CCL’s Sympto-Thermal method. “We needed to catch our breath, so the stakes felt higher,” they recall. “We decided we needed to look into a couple other biomarkers to increase our understanding of exactly what was happening. What’s been fascinating as we’ve learned these other methods is to see them all line up exactly,” they add.
Between home life and volunteering, the couple have their hands full – in a wonderful way. They joke that they have four kids and at any given moment at least seven of them are talking. “There’s really no way to be selfish when you have four children,” they say. “It’s stretched us in the best possible ways. Our life is fuller and more beautiful now than it ever has been.”
Today, Brooke and John continue to walk alongside engaged couples, offering honest insight and encouragement drawn from years of lived experience. For them, NFP isn’t just a method. NFP is a way of life that deepens communication, aligns their choices with their faith, and strengthens Catholic marriage. Juggling family, faith, and service, the Fischers remain grounded in a truth they joyfully share: “Even if the Church had nothing to say about NFP, we would still choose it. It’s been one of the greatest blessings of our marriage.
Written for Family Foundations magazine by Savanna Duca.