Category Archives: Marriage

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LYH40: The Year of Commitment [PODCAST]

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Show Agenda

  • Featured Presentation: 2014: The Year of Commitment
  • Michael Hyatt’s “5 Days to Your Best Year Ever“
  • A Simple Tribute to My Cousin, Leon Evans, Jr.

Featured Presentation

You can find the full blog post on this topic at haroldarnold.com/2014finale

Happy New Year! Welcome to 2015.

Over the course of this year, I have written many blog posts and recorded many podcasts in an effort to add value to my audience. As I look back over the year, it is interesting to see which posts and podcasts most resonated with you.

When I look at them it doesn’t take long to discern an underlying theme: “Commitment”.

I love the way that  Lebron James, the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) most dominant player today, talks about commitment.

“Commitment is a big part of what I am and what I believe. How committed are you to winning? How committed are you to being a good friend? To being trustworthy? To being successful? How committed are you to being a good father, a good teammate, a good role model? There’s that moment every morning when you look in the mirror: Are you committed, or are you not?”

I love this quote because it speaks to the multi-dimensionality of commitment. Commitment must be balanced. As James says, yes there is a commitment to winning. But, there is simultaneously a commitment to being a good person. Yes, there is a commitment to success. But,  ultimately genuine success can only be measured in  relationships.

My Five Most Popular Posts of 2014: Commitment in Review

Leave me a comment a let me know what commitments are important to you for 2015.

Please do me a huge favor and click HERE to go to iTunes and leave me a rating and review. It will only take 2 minutes of your time. And, it means so much to me. And, just for you, I’ll give you a shout out on the next show.

 

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2014 A Year of Commitment

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When a year is winding down, it is naturally to reflect on what meaning one takes from the year. That is the process that I’ve been going through recently as a realize that we are about to put another year “in the books”. For me, 2014 has been a year without equal. It has been the year of breakthough. In these final days of the year, however, I’ve come to realize that for me and many of you what stands out most in 2014 is the consistent commitments that I made. Those commitments have changed everything.

Over the course of this year, I have written many blog posts and recorded many podcasts in an effort to add value to my audience. As I look back over the year, it is interesting to see which posts and podcasts most resonated with you.

When I look at them it doesn’t take long to discern an underlying theme: “Commitment”.

What is it about “commitment” that speaks to our most basic and visceral emotions?

I love the way that  Lebron James, the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) most dominant player today, talks about commitment.

“Commitment is a big part of what I am and what I believe. How committed are you to winning? How committed are you to being a good friend? To being trustworthy? To being successful? How committed are you to being a good father, a good teammate, a good role model? There’s that moment every morning when you look in the mirror: Are you committed, or are you not?”

I love this quote because it speaks to the multi-dimensionality of commitment. Commitment must be balanced. As James says, yes there is a commitment to winning. But, there is simultaneously a commitment to being a good person. Yes, there is a commitment to success. But,  ultimately genuine success can only be measured in  relationships.

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LYH39: 3 Questions to Find the Perfect Christmas Gift [PODCAST]

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Show Agenda

Featured Presentation

You can find the full blog post on this topic at haroldarnold.com/christmas gift

Merry Christmas.<

Celebrating the birth of Christ always begins at the same place. Giving gifts.

Indeed, there is plenty of gift giving happening. But, here is the problem.

Very little of this gift giving is honoring the birth of Christ.

Christ was born into this world as a gift to transform our relationships (upwards) with God the Father, the people around us (sideways), and our own internal sense of self (downward).

We must ask ourselves three questions in our gift giving.

  • How does my gift help this person help this person take a step closer to God?
  • How does my gift encourage this person to see the value their life adds to others, include me?
  • How does this gift reflect who I am or what I desire to be in this person’s life?

How does this make the perfect gift? Well, it is because it is modeled after the perfect gift giver. Jesus.

Your gifts are also perfect when they reflect the gift that Christ has placed within you.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Please do me a huge favor and click HERE to go to iTunes and leave me a rating and review. It will only take 2 minutes of your time. And, it means so much to me. And, just for you, I’ll give you a shout out on the next show.

 

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3 Questions to Find the PERFECT Christmas Gift

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“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.” Calvin Coolidge

Merry Christmas.

I love the Christmas season. The energy, the lights, family gatherings, great food, and of course a smattering of gifts has always been an enjoyable time of year for me. But, beyond all of these, I’ve always understood that there is something vitally more important.

Christmas is a time for us to honor Christ. Yes, we know it is the season that we celebrate the birth of Christ.

But, celebrating the birth of Christ is about much more than singing “Joy to the World”,  hanging a stocking for Jesus over the fireplace, or reading the Christmas story from the bible.

While all of these are great traditions to honor as part of the Christmas celebration, they are not ultimately how to fundamentally celebrate Christ.

No. Celebrating the birth of Christ always begins at the same place. Giving gifts.

Well, that might not sound like any grand revelation. Just a glance under the Christmas tree will prove that there is no shortage of gift giving in many of our homes. In fact, one might argue that most of us give too much.

In fact, a recent Gallup poll estimates that on average Americans will spend close to $800 this Christmas season. And, it isn’t just an American thing. British sources estimate nearly double that amount.

So, indeed, there is plenty of gift giving. But, here is the problem.

Very little of this gift giving is honoring the birth of Christ.

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LYH37: How to Build a Marriage No Matter What?

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Show Agenda

  • Featured Presentation: How to Build a Marriage No Matter What

Featured Presentation

You can find the full blog post on this topic at haroldarnold.com/nomatterwhat

During a recent presentation to a group of couples, one of the participants questioned my assertion that we could love our spouse “no matter what”.  Admittedly, it is a bold statement. His concern was that “no matter what” sets a spouse up for abuse. While I agree with the possibility of this extreme, I countered that my concern is that we have watered down this “no matter what” extreme to something more akin to “if I’m not happy”.

If we’re not happy then we have a difficult time believing that God could be. But, what if God isn’t wedded to our personal standard of happiness?

Three Keys to Have a No Matter What Marriage

  1. Keep Facing One Another (no matter what). You are most likely to move in the direction that you are already facing. Frustrated couples often look outside of their marriage for answers to their emotional needs. Then, as difficulties push them, it is only natural that they move towards that which meets their need rather than towards the spouse. Spouses who make a decision to satisfy their emotional needs (especially romantic ones) only within the confines of their marriage satisfy the fundamental requisite of unconditional commitment.
  2. Communicate Honestly (no matter what). Effective communication is the glue that binds marriage. Conveying your needs, wants and feelings with your spouse, even in stressful situations, creates unity. Always remember that the complementary aspect of communicating honestly is listening actively. Active listening relies more on your heart than your ears.
  3. Encourage Each Other (no matter what). Many couples fail to encourage one another either because they do not think it is needed or because of their own insecurities and shortcomings. God, however, placed you and your spouse together to shape each other into His likeness. Encouragement soothes the pain of this molding process. Encouragement provides validation and legitimacy in discouraging and distressing circumstances. Look at how God offers you encouragement in Deuteronomy 31:6: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” I doubt there is any clearer model of “no matter what”.

Leave a comment and let me know if you feel “no matter what” is too extreme a position to state in marriage.

Please do me a huge favor and click HERE to go to iTunes and leave me a rating and review. It will only take 2 minutes of your time. And, it means so much to me. And, just for you, I’ll give you a shout out on the next show.