We were blessed to celebrate 18 years of marriage yesterday. It really doesn't seem possible that it was that long ago when we said our vows. This year we did something totally different to celebrate. We went to a wedding in a Karen village. It was a great blessing to us, and it reminded us so much of our own ceremony. I wonder where they will end up in the future?
The whole ceremony was Christ-centered. The couple used the verse Joshua 24:15 as their backdrop, and I think it's a lovely life verse for them.
There were many groups that sang special songs for the bride and groom. They were worship songs with good messages. I'm believing that the Karen songs were too since the announcer said they had good meanings. With my limited Karen vocabulary I wouldn't know what they were about. This group with the banjo also had a guitar and a homemade bass. The bluegrass sound brought a tear to my eye and made me think of "home."
Every wedding has to have funny moments. The bride and groom will be talking about these funny happenings for years to come--especially on their anniversary. Trust me, I know.
I'm kind of a quiet person, and I'm not always the most popular person on the scene. But there are certain people that I seem to connect to. Cat Paw is one of those students. She really misses us, and she's always willing to hang out and chat with me. She's entering the 11th grade this year.
And here's the couple celebrating 18 years.
Our old students are really quite shy with us when we go to visit now. A lot changes have happened in two years. The last time we really taught there, Rusty taught on evangelism for their teen camp. Our hearts miss these kids, but when we go back we still have a great time with Pawn's family.
Today at church they had special prayer for us. It was a blessing for sure and made my heart happy. Rusty and I are so blessed to be here and to have so many people who mean a lot to us.
After services one of the ladies told me that Rusty and I were a good example before them. There was a time in my life that hearing that would have been important to me or at least to my pride, but after 18 years of marriage I realize just how much I don't know--just how imperfect I really am. It's funny that when you first start off you have it all figured out. You think you know what love is, and you think you know what commitment is. It's during the first years that the honeymoon may last, but eventually real life creeps in. You start going through disappointments, tragedies, and low points together as well as experiencing success, blessings, and high points together, and it's through these times that you realize that the type of love you had on your marriage day is maturing into a love that lasts a lifetime. It's a love that is richer, deeper, and more self-less than the one you had at the beginning.
If only I had written that marriage book during our first year of marriage when I still had it all figured out. Now I don't think I'll ever get that book written. :)
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