Yesterday was our wedding anniversary. Forty-two years since we said, "I do". Forty-two years since a teen bride (I was not quite nineteen) and a groom in his early twenties, bravely took the plunge to vow to commit to one another for life.
Like many before us - and after - we really had no idea what we were getting ourselves in to. Sure, we were in love, and we believed that love was enough. But unlike the popular song of that era in which we were married, love was not enough - particularly the kind of love sold by Hollywood - if we were to build a lasting marriage.
It took commitment. And communication. And a willingness to walk through the bad and the ugly together. It meant at times holding on fiercely even if just by the barest thread.
It meant building a family together. And a home. Making memories. Companionship. And laughter. And weathering the good times and the bad and all the in-between.
It meant being willing to forgive. To listen (something I'm not very good at). To love when it wasn't easy. To stay when one wanted to go. To daily say "I do" when our selfish nature longed to cry out "I don't."
And, more than anything else, trusting God. Trusting in His faithfulness, in His strength, and in His purpose for marriage.
Today, looking back on those forty-two years, I'm thankful we stuck it out. Thankful we have made it this far. Thankful for all the many blessings. Thankful for five wonderful sons, five beautiful daughters by marriage, and fourteen incredible grandchildren.
And ever so humbled by the faithfulness of our God. It is to His glory that we have lasted the distance. It is to His glory that we have a testimony today of a marriage of forty-two years.
I don't know what the future holds. I hope and pray we have many more years together. I hope for more blessings. But this I know, our God who has faithfully sustained us these past forty-two years, will continue to hold us.
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