Thus it begins. This children’s-style retelling of my personal
love story serves mainly to introduce the basis for this blog. God has the map—the
plan—for our lives. As a Christian, I seek to follow Him and make the best
decisions with all the resources he has given me. The reality is that I am not
able to do this on my own strength, but Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection
means that I don’t have to go alone. My goal for my marriage and my life is to
share with you the love of God, so that you will come to know the true meaning
of grace, and grow in the knowledge of the truth. A life lived with and for
Christ is what makes life worth living.
This is my life-long love story. Come with me.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
Once upon a time, there was a girl.
This girl had certain plans, dreams, and goals for her life.
At the age of seven, she began her relationship with Jesus.
He became a part of her plan, but she still thought she had the map. Over the
next several years, she learned more about Him, and even so, she wanted to know
Him better.
At the age of twelve, she met a boy. The Spirit told her, “You
are going to marry him someday.” Even though she wanted to, she didn’t quite
believe Him.
A few years passed, and at age fifteen, the girl realized
that the map that had been so clear to her when she was younger was very blurry
now. She asked God what was wrong.
He smiled and said, “That is not a map. That is a to-do
list.”
Startled at
her own blindness, she asked, “Where is the map? How will I know where to go
without it?”
Jesus took
her by the hand. “I have the map. Follow me.”
So she did.
At age sixteen, He led her into a friendship with the boy.
“God has
your map?” she asked the boy.
“Yes,” he
said.
“God has
mine too.”
At age
seventeen, He led her into a relationship with the boy.
At age eighteen, she graduated high school. She was very
scared, because she did not have the map. But she prayed for God’s plan, and He
led her away to a college where she met people who challenged and strengthened
her faith. They taught her how to love like He loved her. He prepared her for
what was ahead, and she was content, even though she didn’t have the map.
At age nineteen, He led the boy away too. The girl was devastated,
thinking that it was the end of their relationship.
“The distance will kill us,” she told God, sobbing.
Jesus just offered his hand. “Follow me,” he said, and she
did. She was not alone during that time. She made friends and lost them, took
classes and worked some, all the while praying for God’s plan.
“I want to see the map,” she told God, many times.
“Follow me,”
he said, and she did.
At age twenty, the boy asked the girl to marry him. She remembered
what the Spirit had told her, and said yes.
At age twenty-one, they got married.
“Follow me?” Jesus
asked.
Together, they did.