Speaking of Marriage

On May 1 David and I celebrated our thirtieth wedding anniversary. That sounds like such a long time, but it seems like only yesterday we were standing at the front of the Downtown Church in Searcy, Arkansas, reciting the vows that we wrote ourselves. It was the era of do-it-your-way weddings, daisies, and long hair. We left for our honeymoon in a 1971 Volkswagen Beetle.

In the thirty years since that day, we have been through much more than we could have imagined on that spring evening in 1976. We stood together by the bedside of our infant son as he died. We weathered the storms of financial difficulties when we couldn’t sell our house during the 80’s oil bust. We held each other in the night and prayed fervently through the years our children were teenagers. We faced the challenges that are inevitable in 27 years of full-time ministry. We survived the stress of getting graduate degrees. And now we are off on this adventure with the Lord in Africa.

Through it all we have been sustained by a deep love for each other, our ability to laugh at ourselves, and, most important of all, our shared love and commitment to our Lord. Over and over His faithfulness has carried us through our difficult days and provided just what we need.

There were the high points as well. The births and the adoption of our children will forever be etched in our memories as times of inexpressible joy. Dear friends sustained us through our hard times with loving acts of kindness. Our parents and siblings have been wonderful blessings to us. Our careers in teaching and ministry have allowed us to see God actively at work in the lives of others. The tough times we experienced mellowed us and made us much more fit for God’s service.

All in all, our thirty years have been richly blessed. We look forward to many more.