Thirteen years ago I stood in front of a congregation of mostly strangers and vowed my life to well... basically a stranger. Although we had poured our souls to one another in letters, emails, and in long distance telephone conversations that would eventually nearly break our proverbial bank, for all intents and purposes we didn't really know each other. We had only met the year before. Had you asked me anything about him, I couldn't have answered much besides his love for the Dolphins, yet he had proven to me much of his character. He had shown me his commitment to pursuing me when he submitted to every possible request made of him by my parents, pastors. He had proven to me his integrity by submitting to every request made of us by his government. Even when people we knew and respected would suggest we did it differently, he would not budge. And really, in all of this, he had mainly proven to me his love and commitment to Jesus.
Ever since that day we have walked life side by side. There have been lots of joy (and challenges), laughter (and challenges), fun (and challenges)... thirteen years of LIFE! We have grown by six people and are continuously being stretched by them. It has been an honor (and quite the adventure!) to get to know him, and so sobering and humbling to be known --and still loved so deeply-- by him.
In many ways he continues to be the same man. In many other ways he has just grown stronger. He continues to prove his commitment to loving Jesus in the ways he lays his life down for us in things big and small. He continues to set his heart to pursuing and winning mine --even when he really doesn't need to win it. There is no doubt as to how difficult life and marriage are, there is also no doubt that there is no other human being I'd want to do life with but him.
“ To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God. It is what we need more than anything. It liberates us from pretense, humbles us out of our self-righteousness, and fortifies us for any difficulty life can throw at us.”
― Timothy J. Keller, The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God