succeed

ten years has a nice celebratory ring to it.

whether it ten years old or ten years on the job or,

for us last year, ten years of marriage.

eleven always succeeds ten.

as ben and i have reflected over this year of marriage we have commented that so many milestones have filled our first ten years of marriage.

graduate school

elijah

sam

asher

growth in ministry

launch of a church

as we look ahead to the next ten years we see our boys growing through their teenage years.  we see lots of competition on the sports field, increased amounts of homework, conversations about girls, and prayerfully, our younger two making faith in Jesus their own. we see my dream of writing a book become a reality. we see Epic growing deeper and stronger.

eleven always succeeds ten.

in marriage, celebratory years are milestones. to say we've been marriage ten years receives praise. but what about eleven?

twelve? thirteen? fourteen?

the reality comes alive for me that not every moment is celebratory or monumental. but it's in the every day that builds to the monumental and celebratory.

i get up every day at 6 am, but

celebrate saturdays with no alarm clock.

we eat most meals at home, but

it's a great moment to dine out and have someone else cook.

getting bills in the mail is normal,

but a personal letter is always a treat.

marriage is filled with the every day.

yet something has to take place daily that builds.

builds towards the legacy. builds towards the celebratory.

if we're not building every day, our marriage will not grow.

if we're not building, we remain stagnant.

how celebratory is that?

in the every day, we build...

"how was your day?"

putting them before emails, text messages, & facebook

saying "thank you," and meaning every bit of those two words

setting aside time to talk each other

being selfless

date nights often

going above and beyond

looking at each other in the eye

sharing your dreams, your hurts

working hard to make things right

not letting the sun go down on your anger

praying together (unifies your souls)

showing respect (he's not just occupying space)

extending grace (we all mess up)

desiring & fulfilling intimacy with one another

eleven always succeeds ten.

ben and i celebrate eleven today.

12.16

it's been a non-stop adventure since our wedding day.

if you've been a part of our journey, you know so.

but it's the adventure, the leaps of faith, the unknowns, the celebratory, the every day that build.

we looked at our boys in the face this morning and said,

"each anniversary that we celebrate together is a gift to you.we want to be an example of a fun, happy, strong marriage."

we realize many married couples have anniversaries and wonder why they are still holding on. we strongly desire to be that couple that works daily at our marriage to make it great. it's worth it for our boys. it's worth it for our church. it's worth it for each other.

eleven always succeeds ten.

succeed means to come after, but

also means to turn out well.

may our marriage, may your marriage succeed.

(by the grace of God)