Starting a New Book

It is nearly five months until the wedding, and I am beginning to meet with Joy to prepare emotionally and spiritually for this next phase. I have been so blessed and haven't had to think much about money growing up. I also haven't had a roommate for an extended period of time. I know that the responsibilities of married life will be different than what I am used to, and though I am excited, I want to be prepared to be a supportive and loving wife. This book I am beginning with Joy, a "Sacred Marriage" does not focus on how to have a happy marriage, which I want and expect to have, but rather, its empahsis is on the way that two people can grow closer to God and closer to one another through marriage. Gary Thomas says that "if you want to be free to serve Jesus, there's no question--stay single. Marriage takes a lot of time. But if you want to become more like Jesus, I can't imagine any better thing to do than to get married. Being married forces you to face some character issues that you'd never have to face otherwise." I anticipate that marriage will teach me how to be less selfish, thinking of another always before myself. I want to support Wes, and he makes it easy by loving me so completely. Another point that has stood out to me is that a lot of problems in marriage come when we set the wrong expectations and expect a human to fulfill what only God can. Only He is perfect and both Wes and I will mess up often I am sure, but as long as we remain centered on and filled by the Lord, we will be able to love each other despite our failings.

I know I have a lot to learn and that excites me. I want to be stretched and to grow in my relationship with the Lord and with Wes. I can't wait to see how the Lord uses us in the future.

We are going to be starting marriage counseling soon with Dave, Wes' sisters' father-in-law. He will be performing the message part of our service as well. Wes and I both have a lot of respect for Dave. His profession is Christian marriage counseling, so he has a lot of expertise in the area that I am sure will be of benefit to us in preparing for our married life together. It will also be great to spend some more time with family in the process.

That's all for now. I'm off to Maine day after tomorrow. I am excited to get some of the details figured out and spend some time with my mom.