Romance Secret #1: True Love Commits

[1] Merriam-Webster Online, s.v. wholehearted.

[2] Sun Tzu, translated by Lionel Giles, The Art of War: Illustrated Edition (New York: Fall River Press, 2014), 72.

[3] If you recently read this story in Ready to Wed (Tyndale/Focus on the Family, 2015), I apologize for the repetition, but it’s the best example I know to convey this important concept.

[4] Tu Yu, quoted in The Art of War, 221.

[5] Tu Mu, quoted in The Art of War, 196.

[6] This man’s name has several spellings, and his history is obscure, most often noted in books written in foreign languages about the history of Islam or Spain. Wikipedia has the best reference to the “burn the boats” event that I could understand without first obtaining a master’s degree in Spanish or Islamic history. For more information see the Wiki entry for “Tariq ibn Ziyad” at https://wikipedia.org/wiki/Tariq_ibn_Ziyad.

[7] Sparknotes, “The Aeneid: Book V,” accessed July 1, 2015, http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/aeneid/section5.rhtml.

[8] Several leadership books recount Alexander the Great saying, “We go home in Persian boats, or we die!” However, I was unable to document this incident in any reputable history book.

[9] Aztec-History.com, “Aztec Warriors,” accessed July 1, 2015, http://www.aztec-history.com/aztec-warriors.html.

[10] Never one to let a few facts ruin a great story, I use this oft-told legend because it’s vivid and dramatic. Do an Internet search for “images Cortés burning” to see some glorious paintings of Cortés’s burning ships. However, if you’re a stickler for accuracy, I have to tell you that modern historians assert that while Cortés did dismantle his ships, he didn’t actually burn them.

[11] Scott Stanley, “The Half-Hearted Marriage,” accessed July 3, 2015, http://www.focusonthefamily.com/marriage/strengthening-your-marriage/commitment/the-half-hearted-marriage, originally published in Focus on the Family magazine, January 2007, © Scott Stanley.

[12] American Psychological Association, “Religion or Spirituality Has Positive Impact on Romantic/Marital Relationships, Child Development, Research Shows,” news release, December 12, 2014, http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2014/12/religion-relationships.aspx.

[13] Stanley, “The Half-Hearted Marriage,” Focus on the Family magazine.