I Met a VIP 25 Years Ago... Then I Married Him!

Dear friends,

Yesterday, Thad and I celebrated our quarter-century anniversary of knowing one another. I actually wrote last year about our first meeting, so I won't do it again. You can read the story here: Two Dozen Years and Counting.

I would like to share just four things (out of many) that I appreciate about my husband, along with some fresh examples.

His integrity: Recently I mentioned to him that I had lent some home school text books to someone who hadn't returned them yet. He replied, "That's OK. What I'm really concerned about is whether we have borrowed something from someone else and not returned it." He would never want to take advantage of anyone! I've seen this over and over again even since I've known him, and I respect it.

His organization: Thad likes to have everything all laid out. When he was shopping for a used car so that he could pass his Camry on to Rachel, he had his "car buying" folder filled with his notes about everything related to his search and the particular car he eventually chose. We bought a 2000 Toyota Camry from a private party yesterday, and when we went to pick it up and get the title transferred, the guy was really impressed with how thorough Thad was with his information. It's a good thing that Thad is so logistical in his thinking, because I am not at all. My fly-by-the-seat-of-the-pants style is certainly a challenge to him, but he hasn't given up on me yet! :-)

His simplicity: Thad commented yesterday that his "new" Camry had a few nicks on it, but that he had bought it for its low mileage. I smiled and told him how much I appreciated the fact that he wasn't trying to make some fancy impression on people with his car. I also told him, "If I had thought you were that kind of guy, I wouldn't have married you!" We are pretty plain people. I'm glad that he has never liked me to wear much makeup, because I don't particularly care to bother with it except for very special occasions. Thad is a thrifty man and shops for the best deal, but he's not stingy. He does try to make sure we have a decent computer in the house, because he knows how much it means to the rest of us.

His prayers: I can't count how many times we've been talking about something, even while running errands around town, and he'll say, "Why don't we just pray about it?" And that's what we do, right then. (He doesn't close his eyes while he's driving and praying, though!) I think he realizes, like I do, how inadequate we are for doing the things we need to do, and how much we need the Lord's help. We've had our share of bumps along the way these past 25 years, but with the God's grace and a solid commitment, we've gotten through them -- together!

This past weekend, our church (http://www.metrolife.org/) showed the movie Fireproof. It is a grace-filled film about a firefighter whose troubled marriage is rescued when he takes on "The Love Dare." Thad and I saw it when it first came out last year, too. Thad mentioned how much he like the music, so I bought him the soundtrack for it yesterday. It's got several very touching songs. One of them, "Love is Not a Fight" by Warren Barfield, starts out like this...

Love is not a place to come and go as we please
It's a house we enter in
Then commit to never leave
So lock the door behind you
Throw away the key
Work it out together
Let it bring us to our knees
Love is a shelter in a raging storm
Love is peace in the middle of a war
And if we try to leave
May God send angels to guard the door
No, love is not a fight
But it's something worth fighting for.

~*~*~

May God bless you all with his grace and love!