Kriti Mehrotra
While reality television fans are no strangers to Lisa and Alan “Al” Robertson, thanks to A&E’s ‘Duck Dynasty’ and ‘Duck Dynasty: The Sequel,’ the couple is not the sole focus in these originals. Therefore, not only does Lifetime’s ‘Faith & Forgiveness: A Duck Dynasty True Love Story’ bring them to the forefront, but it also chronicles their romance in a very candid manner. After all, the biographical film chronicles their real-life trials of betrayal, along with how their beliefs ultimately helped them forgive, fix the relationship and fall deeper in love.
Lisa and Al Robertson Are High School Sweethearts Who Tied the Knot as Teenagers
It was in the parking lot of a McDonald’s in their hometown of West Monroe, Louisiana, that high school sophomore Lisa Gibson first came across high school senior Al Robertson. The place was reportedly a popular teen hangout spot back then, but she still caught his eye amid the chaos, and they soon began dating. The former admittedly always dreamt of being with a “nice boy,” as iterated in Lifetime’s ‘Faith & Forgiveness,’ so there were a few hang-ups between them over time due to a myriad of issues.
In fact, Lisa and Al were on-again, off-again for most of their adolescence, especially owing to his alleged alcohol abuse, her past with sexual abuse, and a difference in their future expectations. However, things changed in 1984 when they reconciled once again, with a much clearer mindset and a clearer view of their potential lives together, leading them to decide to marry. They blissfully tied the knot on November 9, 1984, while they were both still teenagers — the 17-year-old was just finishing high school, whereas the 19-year-old had set his sights on being a pastor.
Lisa and Al Robertson Have Navigated Three Instances of Infidelity
As public figures whose motto in life over the past couple of decades has been honesty at every step, neither Lisa nor Al has shied away from admitting their interpersonal struggles. Their own accounts have thus served as inspiration for the aforementioned biographical drama, underscoring that he was unfaithful to his partner in their early years together. She not only forgave him but also chose to marry him later, only for everything to turn upside down in the summer of 1989 when she developed an emotional bond with someone else.
Al was focusing on establishing himself as a pastor when Lisa met someone through work, but she has always maintained that there were no sexual liaisons, despite there being a romantic aspect. Al eventually forgave them both as they expressed genuine remorse, but he did admittedly threaten his wife by stating he would divorce her at once if anything like this happened again. “In the wake of the infidelity, everything we did for the next several months, we did wrong,” he penned in their 2015 memoir ‘A New Season.’ “We wanted to reconcile, but we really did not know how… Every time we had any kind of argument, I managed to bring up Lisa’s extramarital relationship and used it against her.”
Al and Lisa managed to “function well” in the ensuing few years by focusing on their family, their two young daughters, as well as his newfound career as a pastor at the White’s Ferry Road Church. However, they did not really pay much attention to their marriage, which is why they believe they found themselves dealing with unfaithfulness once again over 15 years into their union in 1999. This time around, Lisa had gotten involved with an old boyfriend from school, and it was a full-blown affair lasting over 14 months before her husband caught on. He became suspicious in the summer of 1999, but his wife repeatedly denied the accusations, only for him to uncover the truth not long after through phone records.
Lisa and Al Robertson’s Faith is What Helped Them Reconcile After Deep Betrayals
Since Al had already threatened Lisa with divorce, she never came clean to him when he tried confronting her because she was scared it would mean losing the family she absolutely adored. “I had prayed all through this affair that God would open a door for me to walk away and that nobody would ever find out because I didn’t want to hurt Alan,” she once candidly told Fox News. She added, “I didn’t want to hurt our family. (But) I didn’t think (our marriage) would make it. If he ever found out, I just knew that it was over… I just knew it because he had always told me that. If I ever crossed the line, that would be the end of it.” In the end, he did indeed ask for a full separation upon learning the truth.
According to Al, he spent the first few weeks of his time alone believing his marriage with Lisa was over for good, especially because he was not sure if he could ever trust her again. As per his interview with Fox News, he also wasn’t sure if his wife “really wanted to be in our marriage. Do you really know if your spouse wants to stay? Do they want something more than you have to offer?” However, upon seeing a significant positive change in her over the ensuing few months, his mind took a completely different direction, leading to their happy reconciliation and a promise to pursue counseling. Lisa claims that she was broken and overwhelmed when she called out to God one evening, and he came to her “right there in the backyard. From that day forward, I think I knew I could make it” because she had faith.
The mother of two subsequently changed how she dressed and applied makeup, cleaned up her vocabulary, got baptized, and surrounded herself with women who already had strong faith, which truly impressed her pastor husband. “What changed my mind and heart about Lisa was her,” Al has since revealed. “…She was very sorry for what had happened. She had finally come to a reckoning in her own life… Her growth as a person and as a Christian in those early weeks is what won me over to say, ‘If she has the capacity to change who she is, like I did many years earlier, then I have the capacity to forgive as God forgives.’” The fact that she had forgiven him for his infidelity years ago also played a role in his decision, driving them to get back together, really focus on their union, and renew their vows in December 1999. All of this has seemingly been explored in Lifetime’s ‘Faith & Forgiveness: A Duck Dynasty True Love Story.’
Lisa and Al Robertson Have Since Transformed Their Lives For the Better
Lisa and Al have since made continuous efforts in their marriage, realizing that a strong relationship stems from honesty, open communication, trust, understanding, and vulnerability. In fact, they now assert that a good connection requires not only sexual intimacy but also emotional, physical, and spiritual intimacy, which is why they are now dedicated to helping other couples, too. The co-authors of ‘A New Season’ (2015), ‘Duck Commander Devotional for Couples’ (2016), and ‘Desperate Forgiveness’ currently serve as public speakers who travel across the country to speak with struggling couples.
Moreover, the West Monroe residents are unwaveringly devoted to their love, their faith, Al’s family hunting/outdoor recreation business, Duck Commander, their two daughters, and their six grandchildren. We should even mention that Al left his pastor position in 2012 to join his family’s business, and Lisa has a real estate license she uses from time to time. In other words, after over 40 years together, they seem perfectly content today.
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