Ephesians 5:1-2
Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly beloved Children. And live a life of love just as Christ loved us and gave his life for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
We started a new tradition in our family every thanksgiving since the death of my Uncle Abe. Each member of the family draws two names out of a hat, and publicly shares the things they are thankful for about the name that they drew.
This year, I got lucky. One of the names I happened to draw was the name of my beloved husband. It was my turn to share, and as all the things I wanted to share swirled around in my mind- I found myself choking up, tears streaming down my face, unable to say one word.
You see, my husband made me cry.
He made me cry because I am married to the most incredible man I know. Words don't begin to do justice to the way he loves me and to the kind of man that he is. He has a huge heart, overflowing with love and affection to those around him. He is truly an "imitator of God" in how he lives his life toward me.
I visited Cornerstone Christian Fellowship one Sunday, and Pastor Jay happened to be sharing on the topics of love and marriage. Something he said that day has profoundly impacted the way I live and will never be erased from my mind. He challenged us as married couples to be the "closest thing to Jesus that your spouse will ever see".
Now any of you who are married can understand what a feat that really is. I mean, your spouse is one of the only people who experience you at your "finest"....when you're angry, hurting, worried and absolutely irritated. They see you at your lowest points in life- as you take down the mask and show your true self to them. And some days, that true self can be pretty ugly.
I was challenged that day to really take a look at how I love my husband...and how I love others. I want people to look at me and be able to say that I have lived my life as a reflection of the love of Jesus. What an incredible honor...what an amazing challenge.
I'm thankful for a husband who is truly a reflection of Christ...and more so, I am thankful for a God who gives us the greatest example of what it means to truly love. May we be imitators of God in how we live and how we love.
Just wanted to say that I enjoyed this blog entry. Most of my friends are married, but I seem to secretly question if they love and appreciate their husbands as much as I do mine. Or if I am just freakishly connected with my husband because he is gone a lot.
ReplyDeleteI love my husband so very much that it does bring tears to my eyes just thinking about it. It doesn't matter if he's home or not, I appreciate him and his love for me more than anything.
You are blessed to have a husband that makes you feel that way; it's more rare than it should be.
I enjoy your posts even though I don't always post a comment =)
Ashley Browder
Ashley,
ReplyDeleteAppreciate your comment! You are right, having that kind of a husband is more rare than it should be...if only we could all love each other the right way. It's a difficult thing, and something I pray to grow in each and every day. I'm glad to hear all is well with you and your husband. God bless you both!! Thanks for reading!
Thanks so much for this lovely post. I am blessed to be married to my best friend. He has been by my side through all of the ups and downs life has had to offer for the past 29 years. And I am so grateful that God brought us together. I am your newest follower :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you Alida, so glad to have you reading along. It's beautiful to hear that you are married to your best friend. May God bless you and him with 29 more years. Thanks for your comments and for following! God bless!
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