Well it is official. As of this afternoon, I will have been married to my best friend for 6 years.
Looking back on our relationship, it doesn’t seem that long ago that when we met and I am not sure I would change much. I am so blessed to have the wife that I do, I truly believe that God made her specifically for me and I don’t know what I would do without her.
For those of you that do not know how we met, we actually met when we were very young. Kristen was in the 5th grade (I was in the 7th grade.) and she was one of my little sisters annoying friends that would frequent at our house. Obviously I didn’t see her then as I do now.
It wasn’t until I was just out of high school that we started to date. The way we started to date wasn’t anything incredibly romantic or anything but it was us. Our dating started one Friday night while I was hanging out with my friends, Kristen called me out of the blue and so I went to pick her up. And she hasn’t left my side since. (She is so faithful.) We dated for four and a half years. She always give me a hard time about it but we started dating when she was 16 and I was 18. We both didn’t have a clue about how the world worked at that time. But I knew by the second date that she would be my wife. I am not sure I was ready to admit it at that time but I knew. I can remember telling one of my friends Frank that “there is something different about that girl.”
Right around year four we were engaged on a cruise ship with my family and Kristen was totally surprised. (It was Awesome!) In the following December (the 18th of 2005) we tied the knot at Diamond Oaks Country Club in Fort Worth. I can still remember how beautiful she looked on that day. Although, she really hasn’t changed much.
Since life has changed around us. Careers have changed, houses have changed, relationships have changed, we have changed. But one thing is still the same,I love my wife.
In the spirit of today’s celebration. I would like to leave you with a few things that I have learned in my time of being married.
- It all boils down to being intentional. So get intentional about your marriage.
- Invest in your marriage. Go to couple conferences, read books on marriage and Invest in alone time together.
- Always remember, you are a team. Never focus on the problem. Always work as a team to fix the problem.
- Be quick to forgive. You can never change the past. So why dwell on it? After all, bearing grudges is for 3 year olds.
- Men- Pursue Your Wife! You are the leader of the house. Show her how important she is to you. If you don’t, she will find her value from something or someone else.
- Women- Allow your husband to lead. (Even when he doesn’t.) Trust me. Men don’t need another person giving demands or nagging. They need your support no matter what. (See Number 1 – You are not the coach but a team-mate.)
- Never Ever forget to base your marriage in Christ. If you are both pursuing Him, He will bring you together. This includes praying together, discussing what God is teaching you and/or memorizing scripture together.
What tips would you give me on marriage?