19 years...

19 years ago seemed like a typical day to me at the time--go to class, practice, attend an event, study for a test with a friend, etc. It was a full day, but I had no idea that God had so much more in store for me than what I had written in my planner. ...But do we ever really? We see typical moments and don’t think much of them, or, on the flip side of that, we see devastating circumstances and can’t see past them. We too often forget that God is always at work. He’s working in the little moments and the big; in the joyful moments and the most heartbreaking ones. 19 years ago was just a normal day for me, but God was at work in a big way. There was a silly freshman girl who was about to meet a confident senior guy ;-) and both thought afterward that they'd never have another conversation with one other.  But God had different plans… 

This summer, our family took an incredible vacation to Colorado. Among the many things we saw were some gorgeous waterfalls. I was captivated by the power, beauty, and especially what I saw on the other side of the bridge at one of them—The water was so smooth and still before it hit the big fall. Then, it suddenly rushed from the top, hitting rocks from one side to another as it made a pathway down into a steady stream of water that was somewhere in between the calm and the chaos it had just come from. I just stared at the water for several minutes feeling like I was looking at this season of life DH and I have been traveling.

 It has felt like someone suddenly pushed us off an edge, threw us against the rocks and left us trying to find the path to take to get down.

But as I stepped back to look at the bigger picture, I saw beauty. There was beauty in the quiet and the stillness, there was beauty in the unexpected, turbulent twists and turns, and there was beauty in all of the in betweens. 

The Lord has been so kind to DH and me. We’ve been through a lot, we are going through a lot, and there is probably a lot more to come. This sin-filled world often pulls us in directions not intended by God's perfect plan, but despite what man means for evil, God is able to make into good. He wants me to take a step back and look at the big picture, so just maybe I'll see the beauty of it all.  

Thank you for giving the girl in the overalls with braided pigtails a second glance 19 years ago, DH. You are:

1. the love of my life

2. my hero

3. best friend

4. sweetguy

5. calm-to-my-crazy

6. treasured

7. cherished

8. amazing

9. incredible

10. discerning

11. selfless

12. talented

13. handsome

14. funny

15. respectable

16. admirable

17. patient

18. passionate

19. determined guy, and so so so many more things! 

 19 years ago may have started like just a normal day, but it now serves as a reminder that even when we don't realize it or maybe it just doesn't seem like it, God is always at work in our lives, seeking to bring good to His children for His glory.