22 Years and Counting

Yesterday was our 22^nd Anniversary.

When Jim wrote on Twitter yesterday that he “married a girl he barely knew,” it struck me like it never has before. We only knew each other for 4 months before we married (April – August). Even though we hardly knew each other, the familiarity was striking.

22 years of being together and fighting the odds… The hardships of old baggage and old lovers, Endometriosis and possible infertility, everything physically and emotionally that comes along with not waiting until marriage for intimacy.

The wanting, and even trying, to walk away from something that was so scary and personal and hard.

In fact, we split up 4 times in our first 2 years of marriage. The thing that held us together was the crimson thread of Jesus that was woven tightly through all we were apart and together.

That is the reason we are still together today.

We have fought many battles, some of which have driven us to our knees in despair. These things could have split us apart, but instead, they have pushed us even closer together.

For all these years, and except for the moments and days of the birth of our sons, the last 4 years have been the best. While they have started off on a rocky note, they have been a new start for us after the truth really set us free to be the couple we were made to be.

If we would have given up, we would have missed out on so much.

The realization that God IS who He says He is.

That when you believe in what He calls you to, it may not be what you think it is.

If you trust Him for your life’s adventure, He will take you to places that are not comfortable and fun and always happy.

But there will be a great joy that overtakes you and gives you reason to keep pressing towards the goal.

We would have missed out on the overwhelming feeling of love and joy that came over us when we saw our sons for the first time. The sorrow that is mingled with the sweetness that comes from watching them grow into young men. The hope that they will become great and compassionate men who chase after Jesus Christ with all they are.

And the faith that grows when we trust God with our family.

We could have gone our separate ways, and never fulfilled what was truly planned for us. The blessings and hardships often coexist. We find that these “trials of many kinds” shave off the rough edges, bend the heart into the shape of grace and mercy and love.

We are not perfect, and our journey has been far from it. But I can say, without doubt, Jim is the “best” man who could have been the other half of me. We are so different, but so much alike in so many ways.

To say I am grateful is a severe understatement. I am thankful beyond measure for the husband God gave to me, the children who were so graciously given to us, and the life that God has blessed us with.