Category: Basic Training

This two-part series about marriage began with a list of the lessons that I have learned in my 37 years of marriage which my wife, Cyndi, and I recently celebrated.  In the first post, I detailed three lessons that are more traditional or secular in nature. I conclude now with the remaining 3, which are more internal and biblical.   First, let me recap and categorize the lessons for you: External (Traditional) Companionship Offset Loneliness Provision (Security) and Support Sex for Intimacy and Procreation (and Avoiding Temptation) Internal (Biblical) Character Refinement and Holiness Self-sacrifice / Servant Leadership  Love and Respect  In my opinion, this second set contains the hardest lessons since they will reveal your inner weaknesses that need the most work… at least those did for me!  So let’s go over the second set. Character Refinement and Holiness Many men jokingly say that “they married up” to denote that they

In an earlier set of posts, I wrote about the biggest challenges men face. These included Managing Work-Life Balance, Reordering Our Priorities, Resisting Temptations, and Maintaining Sexual Purity. Someone recently suggested though that another of a man’s biggest challenges is marriage. Well, at the risk of sounding like a “humblebrag”, that was not me.  I’m blessed with a great marriage! So during this week in honor of my 37th wedding anniversary, I’m writing not of the challenges, but about the benefits of marriage, and to share some of my experiences from more than three decades of wedded bliss. In this post and the next, I will describe several of the lessons I’ve learned from my marriage such as:  Companionship Offsets Loneliness  Provision (Security) and Support  Sex for Intimacy and Procreation (to also avoid temptation) Self-sacrifice  Servant Leadership  Love and Respect  Character Refinement and Holiness  First, let’s start with some biblical

This week is a guest post from best-selling author and speaker, Jay Payleitner. I met Jay a few years ago and have picked his brain on a few occasions about my blog and my eventual book about God Buddies. I hope you enjoy his take about God writing out the list of your closest friends. — Rich, your Chief God Buddy It’s pretty clear, some bucket list items deliver more long-term value, edification, and spiritual significance than others. As a matter of fact, I dedicated an entire book titled What If God Wrote Your Bucket List? to the idea of polishing and prioritizing your bucket list based on God’s values. One of the chapters suggests that God values human friendships. Which leads to the question, “How many friends do you have? True friends?” I daresay that most people have had fewer than a dozen authentic friends over the course of