I need a vacation. I know because my wife told me so.
Now you may laugh about that, but she would know. You see,
as of last Friday we celebrated our 39th wedding anniversary. You
don’t spend that many years with a person without getting to know them really
well.
She has seen me at my worst and she has seen me at my best.
She’s cared for me when I’ve been sick, mourned with me when my father died,
and celebrated with me at the birth of our children. She’s been there through a
lifetime of ministry, so she has seen me when I’ve come through the door after
a contentious church committee meeting. She understands when I feel like I
missed it completely in sharing God’s Word on Sunday morning.
She’s also been there to celebrate with me when the sermon
went particularly well that morning and when someone has come to the front
during the invitation to profess their faith in Christ. She is my soul-mate and
helpmate.
As I think about this wonderful thing called marriage I am
reminded that it’s also a reminder of a deeper spiritual truth. God has been
there through it all. No matter what has gone on in my life, God has always
been there for me. He’s seen be bent by discouragement and despair. He’s been
there when my heart broke at the loss of my father. But He’s also been there at
those joyous times of my life. And it began long before I even met the woman
who became my wife.
On a January night fifty-four years ago I surrendered my
heart to Jesus. I entered marriage not knowing that what I knew of love was
just the starting point. I hadn’t arrived, but I had begun. When I accepted
Jesus as my Lord and Savior I didn’t understand the depth of His love or the
full significance of that new life.
Life my relationship with my wife, my relationship with my
Lord is a growing one. I haven’t arrived as a husband and I haven’t arrived as
a follower of Jesus. But I’m committed to growing in both relationships. I can’t
wait to see what the next ten years holds.
Oh, and by the way. Tomorrow morning I start my vacation she’s
been telling me I need. You know, she’s right. I’m looking forward to it.
